Punjab has no dispute with HP, says Mann after offering prayers at Naina Devi

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today said that his state had no dispute with Himachal Pradesh over water, liquor or any other issue and the two states had very cordial relations. He hoped that both states would soon resolve pending matters and execute the Anandpur Sahib-Naina Devi ropeway project.

Mann, along with his wife and other family members, paid obeisance at Mata Naina Devi temple in Bilaspur district. “Punjab and Himachal are like brothers who live peacefully. There have been stray incidents of attack on buses in Punjab and motorcycles in Himachal. I had spoken with Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu after which the situation normalized,” he said while talking to mediapersons after offering prayers at the shrine.

Mann said, “The fight against drugs has to be persistent with cooperation from every section of society. In Punjab, panchayats have passed a resolution to rid their areas of drugs so that the youth can be saved from falling prey to drug addiction.” It was certainly not easy as one could curtail the drug supply chain but along with this you need to upgrade rehabilitation centres, identify hot spots, he added.

He said that his government had transferred officials who were allegedly involved in the drugs racket, following which heroin worth crores of rupees was seized and properties of those engaged in the drug trade were attached. “Himachal was once known for sending youths from every family to the Army but now we don’t have boys who want to join the armed forces. Both states are known as the lands of gurus and deities, so every possible effort should be made to eradicate the drug menace,” he added.

Mann said that he would hold a joint meeting with the officials of Punjab and Himachal to push forward the pending Anandpur Sahib to Naina Devi shrine ropeway project. “Nowadays, it hardly takes time to set up an aerial ropeway, as most of the components are readily available for fixing. We will sit across the table and work it out so that pilgrims from the two states can use the ropeway for darshan at Anandpur Sahib and the Naina Devi temple,” he added.

The Punjab Chief Minister hoped that both states would soon resolve all issues and execute the Anandpur-Naina Devi ropeway. Himachal and Punjab had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the execution of the ropeway project during the BJP government headed by Prem Kumar Dhumal. However, the Congress government headed by Virbhadra Singh cancelled the MoU on the ground that it was lopsided and against the interests of Himachal. Since then the project has no taken off despite repeated efforts of both sides.