Begowal residents hold protest; demand reconstruction, repair of roads at earliest

Lovleen Bains

Doraha, September 30

Residents of Begowal village staged a dharna at the local bus stand on Saturday.

Raising slogans against the government and administration, the protesters alleged that they had been pleading for the re-construction of a village road for more than two years, but to no avail.

To meet Payal SDM on Tuesday

• The residents will meet Payal SDM Jasleen Bhullar on Tuesday
• The protesters have threatened to intensify protest and block the Rampur-Doraha road for an indefinite period of time, if the administration too failed to address their grievances

Former Begowal sarpanch Roop Singh said, “It has become difficult for motorists to cross the Rampur-Begowal road, which is laden with big stones. Many villagers have been seriously injured after falling from their vehicles while treading on this road.”

“After a youngster fell from his vehicle and broke his arm while passing through this road yesterday, we decided to hold a protest,” he added.

The former sarpanch said that the road coming from a nearby tunnel towards the village was also in a poor condition and needed to be repaired at the earliest.

Besides, the Municipal Council of Doraha has stopped the flow of drainage water from the village into the treatment plant, which was installed in collaboration with GLADA. “It has led to the flooding of ponds and roads in the village,” alleged the residents.

Another villager, Gulzaar Singh, accused the Payal MLA of ignoring their problems, even though they had approached the MLA on multiple occasions.

The former Sarpanch along with the villagers submitted a memorandum to the Maloud Naib Tehsildar, who assured them that Payal SDM Jasleen Bhullar will meet them in this regard on the coming Tuesday and try to resolve their problem.

The villagers, in turn, have threatened to intensify protest and block the Rampur-Doraha road for an indefinite period of time, if the administration too failed to address their grievances.

“The protest today was just a symbolic dharna, in which we had sought the participation of selected villagers. But if our demands are not met, all the residents of Begowal village, along with those of Rampur, Mehdoodan, Satnam Nagar and other adjoining villages, will together stage a protest,” said the village delegation.

The Payal SDM said, “I shall be meeting the protestors on Tuesday and listening to their grievances. The construction of roads that they have demanded shall be primarily looked into.”