Citing security concern and Uttarakhand not being taken into confidence by the Uttar Pradesh Government, Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Nainital and former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Bhagat Singh Koshyari stopped the construction of a footbridge over the Mayapur scrap channel of Ganga close to Uttarakhand State guest house ‘Dam Kothi’.
Notably, the guest house was built during the British regime and it is the place where the Chief Minister and other dignitaries stay while they are in Haridwar. The foot bridge is being constructed by the UP irrigation department with around 60 per cent of the works having already been done.
It is learnt that soon after Koshyari reached the guest house to stay he saw the ongoing construction work. He summoned the UP irrigation department officials and asked them to show the no-objection declaration from the Uttarakhand Government. When they failed to produce it he asked them to stop the construction immediately.
Koshiyari later said that it was unethical on the part of UP irrigation department to construct any structure within the Uttarakhand territory sans any permission from the Government here.
“Besides, the matter is related to security of the dignitaries who come here to stay,” he said. He further said that he would take up the matter with the chief ministers of both Uttrakhand and Uttar Pradesh.
However, SDO upper canal Sushul Yadav sad that there was no need to take any permission from the Uttrakhand Government with the construction site being under the jurisdiction of the UP Government.
“We have stopped construction and written to the UP Government for taking appropriate decision. But the work cannot be left postponed for an indefinite period of time. The matter needs to be resolved soon,” he said.