Paying from own pocket for public works, say councillors

Deepkamal Kaur

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, December 9

As state Congress chief Sunil Kumar Jakhar heard grievances of party workers at a meeting today, city councillors opened their heart and shared problems regarding development funds coming to the Municipal Corporation.

Congress councillor Mandeep Jassal said: “The situation has reached a point where the Mayor cannot give us a single lamp for streetlights, which we now have to get installed from our personal income.”

Ward No. 24 councillor Mintu said his ward was the biggest ward but did not have a single safai karamchari. “Two years after our party got the MC elected, I have been regularly requesting the Mayor but have not been able to get a single safai worker deputed for my ward. How will I face voters of my ward? There are several illegal buildings in the city but the staff chose to seal my building,” he said.

Another councillor Gurmeet Chand, too, had raised a similar issue. “The MC staff came and demolished buildings completely. People are ready to pay charges for compoundable violations. We can at least work out to raise such collections and enhance our income but no one is ready to listen.”

Dinesh Sharma, Congress block president, Jalandhar Cantt, said: “There is a total collapse of the civic body. The condition of roads and street lights is pathetic. Traffic management is out of control. There is no system for lifting garbage. The problem of sewage overflows on city roads is rampant. The number of street vendors has increased and we have not been able to contain them. When we came to power, we promised to solve all these issues. In two years, we have failed to bring in the Street Vendors’ Policy. How will we get votes again”.

Former councillor Vijay Dakoha said: “I had gone to Chandigarh thrice to meet CM Capt Amarinder Singh to discuss local issues but I had to return disappointed everytime without meeting him.”

Sidelights

A youth flashed his old and broken phone and said: “My party promised new smartphones to the youth and look at my mobile phone. I, too, had registered for the smartphone scheme but have got nothing.”

Surjit Singh, a party worker, said: “Only 40 to 45 Congressmen who had an approach have been adjusted on political posts. We have 152 market committees, where we can get political appointments done but the government seems happy to have bureaucrats do this work.”

Satnam Singh, a farmer, said for three years, sugarcane farmers had not got dues worth crores from mills. A block samiti member said a genuine applicant could not get birth certificate even in two months while the same could be obtained immediately by paying Rs5,000 as bribe.

The issue of shutting down of tanneries, too, was highlighted. Jakhar responded by saying that it was unfortunate that while new industry was being welcomed, the existing industry was dying.

Jalandhar (rural) Congress president Sukhwinder Lally, who had been issued summons by the ED for today in connection with the suspected hawala case, did not join the investigation. His lawyer appeared before the ED while he took exemption for himself and attended the workers’ meet addressed by the PPCC chief. Jakhar was received by Lally in the city. The Congress chief later said the style of functioning of the ED recently had been questionable since many of its actions had been politically motivated.