Bhawanipatna, YNN: Mahendra Kumar Panda, the senior Scout & Guide leader of the State and District Commissioner of Kalahandi, has successfully completed the Advanced Commissioners Course organised at the Bharat Scouts & Guides National Training Centre in Pachmarhi, Madhya Pradesh. The five-day residential training programme concluded with a valedictory ceremony, graced by distinguished dignitaries including Director (Scout Training) Sri Smriti Sourav Ray, Dr. S. Sukumar, B. Ramesh, A. Guru Swamyi Pandian and S. Yadav. They extended their felicitations to Sri Panda, who was the sole participant from the Odisha State Bharat Scouts & Guides.
It is noteworthy that Sri Panda has been rendering devoted service in the fields of sports and youth welfare for over four decades. During his tenure as the Inspector of Physical Education (IPE) in Kalahandi district, he imparted a distinct identity to the Scout & Guide and Junior Red Cross programmes. Under his leadership, school students from the district earned the rare distinction of reaching the national level in football. In 2017, he organised the state-level football competition, and in 2023, he served as the convenor of the state-level basketball championship held at Brahmapur, earning widespread acclaim for his organisational skills.
Sri Panda’s contribution to Kalahandi’s success is particularly remarkable: in 2017, the district was honoured as the ‘Best District in Junior Red Cross’ at the state level, and subsequently, in 2021 and 2022, it received the Best District award in Scouts & Guides consecutively. Now, having acquired this advanced national-level training, Sri Panda has expressed his determination to further strengthen the Scout movement in the days ahead, reaffirming his lifelong commitment to service and leadership.
