The five day festivities starting from Narak Chaturdashi to Bhai Dooj including the major fest Diwali may have come to an end but the village people from Sarai Mohalla and Kumharhati have still memories afresh of the senior official of the District visiting them and sharing their joys and sorrows.
Each person had his own way of celebrating the festival of lights and the district magistrate of Haridwar celebrated the festival in a unique way with the potters who light up the homes of people making earthen lamps and the family members of martyr policeman Pawan Yadav.
Distributing gifts amongst the potters and trying his hands on the potter’s wheel at a potter’s house, the Haridwar district magistrate Deepak Rawat won the hearts of the community members. Speaking to The Pioneer, the District Magistrate said, “Even the Government is trying to promote the handicraft items and the hands that design them. These potters are making wonderful items which must be promoted. The womenfolk can come forward in giving these pots made by the potters an aesthetic appeal. They can paint these in attractive colours and we can also ask NIT to provide design inputs. Through forward linkage, better marketing can be done for these potters.” Adding further, he said that the potters have demanded electrical wheels, which the authorities shall provide in the near future.
Spending some time with the potters and their families, the district magistrate reached the house of martyr Pawan Yadav who had laid down his life in an encounter while taking part in a search operation for poachers in Uttarkashi while serving in the police.
The father of the martyr said, “It feels good if a person of the stature of the district magistrate comes and asks if any help is needed. All the villagers liked him and we have demanded a Shaheed Dwar in Pawan’s name to be built here for which the DM has given his assurance.”
Speaking to this correspondent, the district magistrate said, “The family members of the martyr did not demand anything else but asked that a Shaheed Dwar be constructed. We would look out for some government land nearby and construct the same.”
The family members of Pawan Yadav were elated by the gesture of the district magistrate and appreciated the officer’s initiative for spending time with the public.