Vigilance Awareness Week: Odisha Vigilance ranked no. 1 in the country, CM heaps praises

Bhubaneshwar (Odisha) [India], October 31 : Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Monday virtually administered the 'Integrity Pledge' to all officers of the state on the occasion of Vigilance Awareness Week.
"I am delighted to know that Odisha Vigilance has been ranked number 1 in the country as per the latest NCRB data," the CM said.
Joining the state-level function on the occasion of Vigilance Awareness Week on a virtual platform, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said, "I am delighted to know that in the area of detection and registration of disproportionate assets cases, Odisha Vigilance has ranked number 1 in the country as per the latest NCRB data."
A state-level function was organised at Convention Centre for the purpose. The theme of this year's programme was "Corruption-free India for a developed Nation".
On the sidelines of the event, the best-performing senior officers and prosecutors were accoladed with awards in presence of the Chief Minister. Bhubaneswar vigilance received the Best Vigilance Division Award.
The CM further said that it is very encouraging to see that in all major parameters like registration and disposal of corruption cases & conviction of corrupt public servants, Odisha Vigilance is among the top performing anti-corruption agencies in the country, as revealed by the latest statistics in Crime in India-2021 published by the National Crime Record Bureau.
Expressing happiness over the report, he said that in the last 12 months, Odisha Vigilance has created new records by seizure of highest amount of cash in a trap case, seizure of highest amount of cash during a house search and unearthing the highest amount of Disproportionate Assets.
He said that these are days of ever-changing technological and professional advancements in every field. The Chief Minister urged, "I, therefore, urge upon Vigilance Department to take Odisha Vigilance to the next level by bringing in technological up-gradation and expanding its multi-disciplinary character by roping in more professionals. Odisha Vigilance must take leverage of best practices and technologies available in the field of anti-corruption to enhance the capacity and effectiveness of Vigilance organization."
CM said that his Government has adopted a 'Zero Tolerance' approach to corruption so that basic public services are made available to the people at the grassroots level in a fair and transparent manner, and the benefits of welfare and developmental schemes reach the backward and poor sections of the society. With proactive steps like 'Mo Sarkar', we are also trying to empower the people, who are the ultimate masters in a democracy, for claiming their rightful entitlements, he added.
Saying that Transparency is a critical factor of the 5T initiatives undertaken by our Government with a view to achieve transformational goals in governance and ensure better delivery of public goods and services to the people in a hassle-free manner, he added, his government has been taking a number of proactive steps to strengthen Odisha Vigilance so that it can discharge its mandate more professionally and serve the people in a better way.
The Chief Minister congratulated Odisha Vigilance for its sustained initiatives in combating corruption. He also called upon all the public servants to show exemplary probity and integrity in their work and appealed to the people of Odisha to renew their resolve to fight against corruption and strengthen the transparency and anti-corruption initiatives of the Government.
Speaking on the occasion Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra said that with 5T and MO Sarkar put in place, most of the services are now offered online. People need not come to Government offices. This visionary initiative has improved transparency. Saying that the state vigilance is running very professionally, he added that the state vigilance academy is one of the best academies in the country. The Chief Secretary emphasised on the strengthening of the internal vigilance mechanism.