Cops’ hope in guard of honour
To ensure that the Vidhan Sabha proceeds smoothly during the ongoing session, Uttarakhand police have deployed a large number of their personnel and raised five barricades in and around the premises. Besides, police have gone for route diversion in many places across the town. However, the sad story lurking in the fool-proof arrangements is the fact that a large number of police personnel who have been brought from other districts to Dehradun are being paid just Rs 150-200 per day by way of day allowance. They have not been provided accommodation either. left with no other option, they are putting up in private hotels. Now, one can imagine where things have landed with them in Dehradun being considered an expensive city. They are keeping mum for understandable reasons. However, the Governor’s gesture of arranging police guard of honour for himself that preceded the commencement of the session has instilled hope in their quivering breast. They hope Dr KK Paul would end their predicament once and for all. Unless the head of the state steps in they would continue suffering mutely to enable the high and mighty get guard of honour and feel secure.
Milking money of liquor
Foreign liquor-2 issue remaining a hot potato for the State Government with BJP hissing, if not biting, since March 2014, some politicians are out to make hay when the sun shines. As some liquor barons recently approached them to prod the State Government to soften its stance, they said they would not do anything unless the traders adequately greased their palms. They cite some others, also in the thick of liquor trade, having given them lucrative offers aside from presenting good quantity of the stuff. The hapless traders acquiesced, sheep-like, to the glee of the wily public figures. Things are now progressing right as the traders have convened a meeting to decide who would give how much to humour them. Someone has remarked these crafty traders of democracy are adepts in conjuring up money even from nowhere much in the same way as the legendary Gonu Jha used to do when a Mughal was in the Delhi throne.
Going Budget way
To bridge the gap between the people and the Government, Chief Minister Harish Rawat has proved excellently innovative. People are often brought on board. For instance, he sought people’s opinions over phone and video conferencing to endear the budget and himself to the common people. However, the fact on the ground is that long before he embarked on such a huge PR exercise his Cabinet had cleared the fine-print of the budget. Soon came another such much-vaunted exercise of seeking suggestions on the Government’s Excise Policy. For this, he had things advertised in Hindi dailies. However, the stark fact is that during a Cabinet meeting, the CM had referred the policy to a high profile committee chaired by the Chief Secretary. It might mean two things. He has scant confidence in his colleagues and bureaucrats. Or it is a mere PR stunt, sans substance. However, the officials who have been asked to seek and record people’s suggestions sound perplexed with the enormous volume of the people’s response having come their way to the CM’s splendid gesture, exemplifying participatory democracy. Some of them are wondering whether things would go the Budget way.