Gurdaspur diary: Too many cooks spoil the broth

Pathankot: This once scenic township, considered to be the gateway to the neighbouring states of J&K and HP, is going to the dogs. Haphazard planning and the 3.6-km stretch of the narrow gauge railway line which transverses through the city’s MC limits have only adding to the chaos. The city was once famous for its three Ts — timber, tourism and transport. The city thrived and residents wore opulence on their sleeves. Swanky cars and residences with the latest designs were the order of the day. Then from the late 90s, rot started to set in. The job of the Municipal Corporation (MC) is to keep the city neat and clean. However, the city fathers are more interested in politicking rather than having a look at the sanitation side of the city. Proposals pertaining to developmental works are brought to the MC General House where they are discussed threadbare and later implemented. Such initiatives die a natural death if the general house does not meet. As mandated by the Local Bodies Department, the House meeting should be called at least once a month. But nobody cares. So much so, no meeting of the House has been convened for the past seven months. Mayor Panna Lal Bhatia, sources say, is simply not interested in convening the House. His fears are that councillors of the opposition and even from his party will question him on why development works are not taking place. He has even stopped taking calls from the media. He was considered to be the blue-eyed boy of former Congress MLA Amit Vij. With Vij losing the elections, the Mayor too has lost his moral authority to manage the MC. Filth and garbage is littered everywhere. The decade-old sewer system is overwhelmed to the brink. The city has a unique political configuration. The Mayor belongs to the Congress, while the MLA, who is also the ex-officio member of the House, is from the BJP. To complicate matters, the AAP dispensation has appointed its losing candidate Vibhuti Sharma as the city’s caretaker. It is a classic case of too many cooks spoiling the broth. All three are working at cross purposes with each other. The common man is left to fend for himself. Residents hope all three sit across the table to sort out the city’s problems. But that is wishful thinking. Will somebody tell the Mayor to convene the House where the mess can be sorted out? Or will he keep on running away from himself? Residents are waiting to get an answer.

Partap Bajwa’s hands are full these days

Gurdaspur: Leader of the Opposition and Qadian MLA Partap Singh Bajwa never had it so good. The latest is that he has been appointed as observer for poll-bound Himachal Pradesh. His hands are full. He has to look after the interests of the people who voted for him in Qadian and also to look after the interests of the entire opposition in the Vidhan Sabha. Then he also has to ensure that the Congress romps to an electoral victory in HP. He not only has the cake, but is eating it too. In HP, what will come in handy will be his experience. He is now into his fourth term as an MLA. He remained a Lok Sabha MP from 2009 till 2014 when Vinod Khanna relegated him to the sidelines. His party had other plans for this losing candidate. Months after his loss, he was rehabilitated as a Rajya Sabha member. While he remained a two-time MP, he worked on several standing committees. His experience is being looked forward to by HP Congressmen as the polls near. All the best, Mr Bajwa.

Maharaja Ranjit Singh: A reign still remembered

Gurdaspur: Sher-e-Punjab Maharaja Ranjit Singh was remembered on his death anniversary on June 27. His palace in Dinanagar was renovated and given a fresh lease of life. Officials remember dignitaries on either their birth or death anniversaries and in between they are not remembered at all. Throughout the year, the palace is left at the vagaries of nature till officials make certain his palace is infused with oxygen every year on June 27. Batala physician and Chairman of the Gurdaspur Planning Board Dr Satnam Singh Nijjar has this to say about the Maharaja, “He was also known as Lion of Punjab. He was the first Maharaja of the Sikh empire which ruled the North-West Indian sub-continent in the first half of the 19th century. He survived a bout of smallpox in infancy, but lost sight in his left eye. He was just 10 when he fought his first battle alongside his father. He repeatedly defeated invasions by outside armies particularly those arriving from Afghanistan and established a good rapport with the British. His legacy includes the rebuilding of Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar as well as other major gurdwaras. Ranjit Singh was succeeded by his son Kharak Singh.

(Contributed by Ravi Dhaliwal)

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