A large village, having more than 10,000 population in Haryana’s Yamunanagar district recently underwent a name change for a unique reason. The hamlet, which had been known as “Mustafabad” for decades is now “Saraswati Nagar” but nothing has changed for this village except its name.
Named after mythical Saraswati river, the village has been in the limelight with experts claiming that the old dried-up riverbed of Saraswati river existed near the village. However, at the time when the Manohar lal Khattar Government in Haryana is pulling out all stops to convert mythological river Saraswati into a reality with its ambitious Rs50 crore project, the village “Saraswati Nagar” has become a classic example of Government’s apathy.
The BJP-led Haryana Government which renamed the village, recently, apparently pursuing its saffron agenda, has now completely abandoned it. The demands of the villagers for improvement in basic amenities including healthcare, education, sanitation, road connectivity among others have been ignored by the higher authorities.
Even as a large number of politicians and Government officials have paid a visit to this village in connection with ongoing ambitious project to discover mythological Saraswati river and have also promised relief from the State Government, nothing has transpired so far.
The villagers are now unhappy towards the State Government’s lackadaisical attitude towards the development works of the village, which is believed to have a major connection with river Saraswati. The village has a population of more than 10,000 and around 1700 voters.
“The villagers are really disappointed from the State Government as nothing has been done for the development of “Saraswati Nagar” even as the village has a lot of significance due to its connection with the river Saraswati. We were expecting things would be better after the village was named as “Saraswati Nagar” recently, but nothing has changed for us,” said Sarpanch Mohit Kumar of “Saraswati Nagar” articulating the collective sentiments of the villagers.
Talking to The Pioneer, Mohit said, “We have written letters to the Chief Minister requesting him for construction of an overbridge, government college, providing staff at health institution and improve road connectivity with nearby 85 villages but nothing has been done in the past one and a half year. We have also submitted a complaint at “CM window” but waiting for a response.”
Sharing stories related to village’s connection with river Saraswati, the Sarpanch said, “The Saraswati pond in the village is decades old and believed to have restored the water of now “lost” sacred Saraswati river, which used to flow from the village about 4000 years ago. Even as the Government is spending crores of rupees to revive the river Saraswati, not even a single penny has been spent for the cleaning of the Saraswati pond in the village. The villagers have requested the higher authorities several times to get this largest pond cleaned but to no avail, said Mohit while blaming the State Government for its apathetic attitude.
Notably, Haryana Government is gearing up to make the “lost” river Saraswati flow by July 30 as preparations are underway to release water into what is believed to be the route of this river. The water from Uncha Chandana village would be discharged on July 30 through the Dadupur feeder into the route, where digging and cleaning work is currently going on. The route covers Yamunanagar, Kurukshetra and Kaithal districts.
The State Government has also decided to celebrate Saraswati Mahotsav in February next year and also roped in those States where the course of the sacred Saraswati river has been traced.
The Saraswati, considered sacred in Hindu religion, finds mention in ancient Hindu scriptures like the Rig Veda, Mahabharata, Ramayana and others, giving credence to the belief that it existed during those times.
The Manohar lal Khattar Government had in 2015 decided to restore Saraswati creek from Adi Badri to Saraswati Nagar in Yamunanagar district. Since the formation of first BJP Government in Haryana, the Chief Minister Manohar lal, who has been a Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) ideologue, and other prominent BJP ministers have been quite inclined to restore the mythological river, given its significance in Hindu mythology.
Khattar who has never denied his close links with the RSS, has time and again stated that the cow, the Gita and Saraswati are articles of faith for the majority of the people and have a special place in the country.
The BJP led State Government has, however, remained under attack from the opposition for pursuing the RSS agenda in education - manifested in the introduction of Gita “shlokas” and moral science booklets besides introducing yoga in schools. Implementing a strict Act, the state had last year made cow slaughter punishable by up to 10-year imprisonment for protection and upkeep of cows.