Flukes and mixes, construction and abandonment, and hope and heartbreak are the jinxed picture of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s two hours visit to India’s most planned city which ran into chaos for that time period.
It is said that “All’s well that ends well,” but never ever a bad ending results in a good catharsis especially on a public stage. The UT Administration which was on its toe for welcoming the PM of the country faltered in more than one arena and even the final scene was not well executed.
To avoid clogging the city roads with unnecessary checks and measures, it was first planned to fly the Prime-Minister to the venue where he was to inaugurate a housing project for rehabilitation of the slum dwellers in the city. However, after spending around Rs 14 lakh, the constructed helipad was abandoned in solitude as the PM was later brought by road. Till a few months ago, people who were to get possession of the houses under the rehabilitation scheme were exalted beyond expression as the promises that were made by the Government turned them head over heals.
But when they visited the site the expression changed and the hue and cry started. Noor Muhamaad (name changed) said that the houses are too small and cannot accommodate his family. The one room accommodation with a shared kitchenette failed to impress others who were there to visit the site with Noor. However, all eyes were fixed on the visit of Prime Minister and people had their expectations set upon him. But the final nail in the coffin was when the PM himself took the stage and the show unveiled.
Until sometime back, all eyes were drawn to the stage and the audiences were all hooked to the speeches of the leaders who addressed them. But, as soon as the Prime-Minister took the podium people started leaving because he was not audible. It was only after extra effort taken by the security officials and some cane flashing that the peace in the crowd was restored. But even after the desperate attempt of the police few people preferred to leave.
When asked, Jayanti Yadav, a lady in the audience said that “I cannot hear a word that the Prime Minister is saying. It took me an hour to walk down to the venue but not a drop of water is available here to drink. On top of that the heat is unbearable. I came here to listen to the Prime Minister with high hopes but I am leaving disappointed.”
There were many among the audience who shared the same view as Jayanti. So, over a crore spent by the UT Administration for the two-hour programme for hosting the Prime Minister ended up in disappointment of many among the audience.