PM strikes emotional chord with Lahaul natives

Pratibha Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Sissu (Lahaul), October 3

The visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Himachal Pradesh for the inauguration of the Atal Tunnel, Rohtang, was a walk down memory lane, as he remembered people by name, his frequent visits to the state and the local cuisine he relished.

He struck an emotional chord with the people of Lahaul as he addressed a public meeting at Sissu, 8 km from the north portal of the tunnel in Lahaul. “Juley Kandingh di tunnel kendingh Atalji te araf tohfe shu” (the tunnel is Atal ji’s gift to the people of Himachal), he said amidst an applause by the people,

He said that he has a right over the state and its people, as he had been the in-charge of party affairs in Himachal. “Very often, I and Dhumal ji would broach the issue of the tunnel with Atal ji, who announced the construction of the Rohtang tunnel, which became a reality today,” he added. He fondly remembered doing paragliding on the Solang slopes, where the public meeting was held.

On the Sidelines…

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Union Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur as ‘Himachal ka chokra’, a reference to how he was addressed by the Congress in Parliament, at all the three places — Solang, Sissu and Dhundi.
• He repeatedly referred to former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal and his close association with him while he was the in-charge of BJP affairs in Himachal for six years and how they often discussed the Rohtang tunnel with Vajpayee.
• Modi said “Himachal ka mujh par bahut adhikaar hai” and I still feel very close to the people of the state, reflecting his proximity to the hill state.
• At Solang, Narendra Modi spoke in Kullvi dialect and said that the Rohtang tunnel was Atal ji’s gift to the people of Kullu, Lahaul and Pangi.
• As a policewoman fainted while he was addressing the public meeting at Solang, Modi asked his medical team to attend to her.
• Modi made a reference to Arjun Gopal, who hailed from Lahaul and was a close friend of Vajpayee. Gopal is credited with playing an important role in convincing the former PM to clear the tunnel project. His son Amar Singh, who was present at the Sissu meeting, became emotional as Modi mentioned his father’s name. His elder brother rode the first bus along with 15 persons from Lahaul after Modi inaugurated the tunnel.

Modi said that the opening of the tunnel would pave the way for easy transportation of agricultural produce such as vegetables, peas and potatoes. “I have enjoyed Chandramukhi potatoes of Lahaul and now with the opening of the tunnel, the world can get all these products,” he added. He credited Arjun Gopal, fondly remembered as Tashi Daswa, who was a friend of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, with convincing the former Prime Minister about giving the go-ahead to the Rohtang tunnel.

The Prime Minister adorned a colourful Kullvi cap, and a maroon muffler at the function at Solang while he addressed the people of Lahaul wearing a maroon cap, decorated with yellow flowers. He was presented with a Tibetan Thangka painting by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur.

Modi spoke at length about his close association with Thakur Singh Negi, a former IAS officer and Speaker. “I got to learn so much from Negi ji, who had vast administrative and political experience,” he said. He added that he often travelled on these arduous roads to reach Rohtang, so he could relate with the problems faced by people in getting medical treatment or meeting other necessities when the area is snow-bound.

Modi said that his government fulfilled the one rank-one pension demand of ex-servicemen and one lakh retired Army personnel in Himachal had benefited from it. He added that the previous Congress government at the Centre had only rendered lip service on the issue and made a mere Rs 500 crore allocation compared to Rs 11,000 crore provided by the NDA government. Himachal has more than three lakh serving and retired Army personnel.

He said the Union Defence, Education and External Affairs ministries should jointly showcase the Atal Tunnel as an engineering marvel to the students of engineering and science, not just from within the country but also from abroad.

The Chief Minister said that the people of the state would remain indebted to the Prime Minister for showering his love and affection on the people of Himachal. “Like Atal ji, you too consider Himachal your home and the people of the state take a lot of pride in this fact,” he added.

Thakur said that despite the coronavirus pandemic, the Prime Minister chose to come here to inaugurate the tunnel and this was the first function he attended since the pandemic broke out. He also spoke about the time when Modi did paragliding in Solang, where the Prime Minister addressed a public meeting after his return from Lahaul.