Sekhon’s Issewal village seeks development

Minna Zutshi

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana (Issewal), Dec 30

In martyr Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon’s Issewal village, which was also adopted by Ludhiana Member of Parliament Ravneet Singh Bittu as a model village in 2015, voters across different age groups ask for development of the village. For a village with 1,470 votes and a population of 3,000, the gram panchayat elections are an enthusiastic affair. Walls of houses, shops and buildings were chock-a-block with pamphlets that proclaim about the candidature of aspiring Sarpanch candidates.

Voters were acutely conscious of the sacrifice of Flying Officer Sekhon, who was posthumously awarded Param Vir Chakra. “It is our duty as well as our right to vote,” says Hardeep Kaur, a first-time voter. A postgraduate student of Punjabi at the GTB College in Dakha, she has grown up listening to the tales of valour of Flying Officer Sekhon. Though not clear about the core functioning of the gram panchayat, she said focus should be on local development issues. “In our village, public transport system is non-existent which makes it very difficult for girls to pursue higher studies,” she said.

Hardeep wished that some kind of provision is made for a bus service that operates within the village and also plies between Issewal and other villages.

For first-time voters, including Gurjant Singh and Jaswinder Singh, development of the village is the key to its prosperity. They wait in the queue for quite some time before their turn comes to cast their votes.

Women voters from the village have turned up in large numbers. Sukhjit Kaur, Satinder Kaur, Gurjit Kaur and Sarabjot Kaur talk about the importance of electoral participation. “This is the village of two martyrs – Flying Officer Sekhon and Saroop Singh – who laid down their lives for their country. The local leaders, Sarpanch and panches should work together for the progress and development of the village¸” says Satinder Kaur.

Open drains that overflow is an issue which is hard to ignore for villagers of Issewal. Harpal Singh, a retired PAU employee, says the village needs a properly-functioning sewerage system. “Whosoever gets elected as a Sarpanch must work for the development of the village that has etched its name in the annals of history. The village is proud of its brave son Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon who was martyred in 1971 war.”