Panchayat members peeved as MLA lays stone for renovated school wall

Members of the Heran village panchayat in Nakodar are annoyed ever since Inderjit Kaur Mann, MLA from the area, laid the foundation stone for repair work of the boundary wall of a government primary school here on Tuesday.

The panchayat members said that a part of the 50-60 feet long boundary wall of the school had fallen off, which the government got raised again. “They repaired the wall, plastered it and got it painted. To gain mileage from this routine work, our MLA laid a foundation stone for the work right near the entrance gate. She has been giving the impression as if she has got the school renovated. Many hoardings have been put up regarding the work in the entire village. But the reality is that it is a 30-year-old school and only the outer wall has been repaired,” said village Sarpanch Mukhtiar Singh Heran.

“The panchayat was not kept in the loop. Neither I, nor the other seven panches, were extended any invitation for the function. We went to the school after the function was over,” he said. Davinder Kaur, the Sarpanch’s wife, is a member of the Zila Parishad. The panchayat members even wrote along the MLA’s plaque that this wall is four years old.

Said Mukhtiar Singh Heran, “This is no Sikhya Kranti as claimed by the state government. The real revolution will be when our kids perform well in the examination and when the teaching environment is fully conducive. The work has been done under Sarv Sikhya Abhiyan under which only 40 per cent of the fund share is pooled in by the state government while the remaining 60 per cent comes from the Centre.”

MLA Inderjit Kaur Mann, on being quizzed by media persons, said, “The panchayat was not given any invitation as the members never make it to any government event even when they are called. So, there is no point calling them, when they are not going to come.”