Despite waxing eloquent on ‘Swachchh Bharat’, a slogan coined by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Bharatiya Janata Party leaders and activists have trashed it when they left Parade Ground under piles of garbage after the meeting addressed by the party president Amit Shah was over.
This garbage lies strewn all over the place on the historic ground despite three days having passed since the mega rally addressed by Shah was held.
The state BJP had organised ‘Trishakti Sammelan’ at Parade Ground on Saturday where thousands of booth level workers from Tehri and Haridwar Lok Sabha constituencies had been addressed by Shah and chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat besides a host of other BJP leaders and senior party functionaries.
The party had made elaborate arrangements to keep its foot soldiers in good spirit by providing them with sumptuous breakfast and lunch. Arrangement for snacks, tea and coffee had also been made for the party rank and file. The organisers had claimed that arrangements to feed 15000 party workers had been made in the ground.
However, the condition in which the party workers had left the ground after the rally was over has triggered the question over whether the slogan coined by the PM is meant for occasion lip service and platitudes. “The BJP leaders and workers are yet to take the sanitation lessons of PM Modi through his Swachchh Bharat campaign to their heart. It is a pity,” said an observer.
While one steps in the ground a stench of rotten eatables greets him. Things are particularly so near the athletics track. This track attracts a large number of sportspersons and morning walkers. Outside the track, heaps of plastic cups, plates other wastes are found.
“It is really shameful that the mess has been allowed to remain even three days after the rally. The political parties are free to organise rallies and public meetings, but they are morally bound to get the place cleaned after the programme is over,’’ said Narendra Singh Rawat, a retired Army officer who is a regular morning walker. A youngster who comes to the ground for his regular Boxing practice echoed the same. He said, “The authorities restricted our entry for two days and now the ground is stinking.’’
Interestingly, Parade Ground is managed by the sports department and whenever it is let out for events like fair, programme or a conclave, a condition is attached that the ground should be cleaned before it is handed back to the department. Quizzed, the joint director Sports, Dharmendra Bhatt admitted that the ground should have been cleaned before it was handed back to the department. “There is a clause of forfeiture of security amount in case the place is not cleaned,” he added.