Union Govt ignored holy city Amritsar in Budget, rue residents

Neeraj Bagga

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Amritsar, July 24

A large number of city residents are unhappy with the Narendra Modi-led Union Government’s Budget as they feel that the ruling dispensation at the Centre completely ignored Punjab in general and Amritsar in particular.

The city of the Golden Temple is considered religious and cultural capital of Punjab. Despite this, the city has been fully ignored in the Union Budget. Arun Jaitley unsuccessfully contested the 2014 General Elections, but he fulfilled many promises made in run-up to polls. Kulwant Singh Ankhi, retired principal

BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate Taranjit Singh Sandhu Samundri had promised to develop the holy city during his campaigning in run-up to elections. He even promised to make efforts to resume international trade with Pakistan, Afghanistan and Middle East countries via Attari Wagah border. Dr Charanjit Singh Gumtala, resident

Kulwant Singh Ankhi, a retired principal, said, “The city of the Golden Temple is considered religious and cultural capital of Punjab. Despite this, the city has been fully ignored in the Union Budget.” He requested the Prime Minister to shun the political narrow mindedness and sanction a special economic package for Amritsar, the border district.

He recalled that Arun Jaitley had unsuccessfully contested the 2014 General Elections from Amritsar against Congress leader Capt Amarinder Singh. After the NDA formed government at the Centre, Prime Minister Narendra Modi elevated Jaitley to Union Finance Minister, he said. Jaitley did not harbour any grudge against city residents even after setback in the Lok Sabha elections, he said. He fulfilled many promises made in the run-up to the elections, said Ankhi.

During his maiden Budget speech in parliament in the year 2014, Jaitley had given a go ahead to establishment of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in the holy city and approved setting up of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Punjab, he said.

Although Jaitley wanted an AIIMS in Amritsar too, but the medical institute was diverted to Bathinda, rued Ankhi. During the next Budget session in 2015, Jaitley had given approval to set up the Post Graduate Institute of Horticulture Research and Education at Attari village in Amritsar. In the 2016 Union Budget, Jaitley allocated Software Technology Park for Amritsar. Its campus is coming up at Industrial Focal Point, Vallah.

Residents say BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate Taranjit Singh Sandhu Samundri, a close aide of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, should not keep any grudge for the debacle he suffered in the polls. They say Samundri should focus on developing Amritsar as the most clean, green and safe city on the pattern of Indore, which is considered the cleanest city of the country.

Another resident Dr Charanjit Singh Gumtala said Samundri had promised to develop the holy during his campaigning in the run-up to elections. He said the BJP candidate had even promised to make efforts to resume international trade with Pakistan, Afghanistan and Middle East countries via Attari-Wagah border. He had asserted to make the cargo terminal of Sri Guru Ram Das Ji international Airport fully functional so that the yield of farmers could be exported to fetch more prices. Samundri also promised to establish more skill development centres so that more and more Matriculate and twelfth pass-outs could earn their livelihood easily and shun the trend of migrating to other countries.

The farming community, industrialists, businessmen and social workers of the city were expecting a special economic package, but were disappointed when Amritsar was not even mentioned in the Budget. On the other hand Bihar and Andhra Pradesh were gifted special economic packages.