Seemingly in a hurry, the ruling parties at the Centre and in Uttarakhand are in no mood to give each other time or space to perform.
The BJP has just completed 100 days in office at the Centre and a little over three months can hardly suffice for one to sit on judgment on the Government in terms of fulfilling its commitments. However, the State Congress keeps firing salvos at the BJP-led NDA Government for all that the Himalayan State is currently facing.
State Congress president Kishore Upadhyay kept using all the public forums — during his nearly a week-long Kumaon visit — to slam the Centre for meting out a step-motherly treatment towards Uttarakhand.
He has even threatened to take to the streets against the BJP-led NDA Government if the latter continues to be indifferent towards the grievances of the people of the State. The Chief Minister has also just completed six months in office as the head of the State Government. So his electorate can justifiably expect results regarding the promises he had pledged himself to fulfill. However, his well wishers and conscience keepers here are of the view that the Chief Minister should be given some more time, given certain things that his Government had to bear with like the local civic and general elections followed by adverse climatic conditions during the Monsoon season.
But BJP seems to be in a tearing hurry to show that all his promises are proving hollow. This aside, the party rubbished reports that the Centre is apathetic to the development dreams of the people of the State.
It is the Chief Minister’s prerogative to devise ways as to how to improve the public delivery system and, more importantly, to put the process of development on the right tracks, said Anil Baluni, BJP’s national spokesperson.
However, he assured in the same breath that the Centre would extend all possible assistances to the hill State in the days to come. Interestingly, both Congress and BJP keep enjoying power alternately since the inception of Uttarakhand. It may be recalled that it was the Congress-led UPA Government at the Centre that withdrew the special package that the then BJP-led NDA Government had granted to the Himalayan state to boost its development with stress on the industry sector.
The special industrial package was withdrawn when BJP was saddled in power in the State. later, Congress came to power, but it has failed to bring back the special package during its about two and half year tenure. With both the parties flaunting their commitment to usher in development, it is for the people to decide whether they should have their fingers crossed or should dream that ‘Achhe Din’ is staring them in the face.