Bhubaneswar: A stall near the BJP’s state party office, done up in a bright shade of orange, is attracting the attention of commuters these days. Overlooking the Janpath, it showcases Brand Modi Inaugurated on March 16, the ‘NaMo’ store sells merchandise showcasing BJP and its government’s projects in the country over the past five years. It sells T-shirts for both men and women, khadi jackets, pens, coffee mugs, key chains, badges and caps, as well as wristbands, all embossed with the word ‘NaMo’ or different messages.The T-shirts and caps come in saffron, blue and white; the jackets are navy; the pens are white and the key chains and badges are orange with ‘NaMo’ and a lotus on them. “Of all the items, key chains are selling the most. We have sold more than a 100 in the first four days since the store was opened,” said Sushil Kumar, an RSS member from Haridwar, one of the five people manning the store.The T-shirts have catchy captions and doff a hat to urban lingo. The ones on display carry messages like ‘keep calm and trust NaMo’, ‘NaMo again’ and ‘Nari Shakti — women-led development’. “I am a BJP man and I bought a T-shirt today. I like wearing these and already have a white one,” said Lal Rodinga Colney, BJP’s state secretary (Mizoram), who was among those browsing the wares on offer.Members of the saffron party are not the only ones buying merchandise, however. Amar Pattnaik, a manager with a private insurer, picked up a NaMo mug because he liked the design. Debraj Mallah, who also works in a private company, bought a wristband. “I bought it because I like our Prime Minister and appreciate the work he has done. I am big fan of his,” said Mallah.The store, which is witnessing steady footfall, has already sold 50 caps and T-shirts each, five to six mugs and two jackets, among other things. The merchandise is procured from Delhi, where the first NaMo store was opened at the national BJP office. “The merchandise can also be procured online through the Narendra Modi (NaMo) app,” said Sushant Kumar Bhoi, a BJP member looking after the store.The proceeds from the sales will be used for the Namami Gange or National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) project, which aims to nurture the Ganges back to life. The walls of the NaMo store have not only been used to showcase the merchandise but have two huge posters on the NMCG project. A person can donate in amounts of Rs 5, Rs 50, Rs 100, Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 through the NaMo app for the project. Also, one person has been engaged to download the app on the smartphones of buyers who wish to do so. People in the store are also giving away booklets and pamphlets on the Centre’s programmes free of cost to whoever asks for them.

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