Ex-MLA claims no stone left unturned to meet aspirations
Ex-MLAs’ Report Card Constituency: Doda Shakti Parihar (BJP)
Mohinder Verma
DODA: Though people of some areas of Doda Assembly segment claim that there is no parallel to the developmental works carried out by the former MLA Shakti Raj Parihar of Bharatiya Janata Party during a short span of three years yet vast population of the constituency is still crying for proper healthcare facilities, adequate teaching staff in the schools, proper water supply, better road connectivity and other basic amenities of the life.
A team of EXCELSIOR during recent random survey in this constituency didn’t found even a bit of semblance of ‘near absolute development’ as is claimed by the Bharatiya Janta Party in general and party’s former MLA in particular. People of some areas are of the opinion that had former MLA been concerned about vigorously taking up their basic issues with the respective departments of the State Government during party’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir instead of just boasting off about the major works taken up under the Centrally Sponsored Schemes the situation would have improved up to a large extent.
However, others give him the margin of having obtained only three years for carrying out development of a vast constituency spread over hilly and tough terrain in comparison to those who were given mandate by the people prior to 2014 Assembly elections.
What to talk of peripheral areas even the main areas of the district headquarters were found lacking functional street lights and improved drainage system, the issues which were flagged by the people before the former MLA a number of times as well as the then Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti during her Public Outreach Programme.
“If the former MLA fails to transform the developmental profile of the main areas of the district headquarters what else could be expected from him”, said some shopkeepers near the Doda Bus Stand, adding “there are several schemes of the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Development Department for the drainage sector but during the past three years new drainage network has been laid only in some selected areas because of the reasons best known to the authorities concerned”.
They said, “we have read in the newspapers that the former MLA had vociferously taken up these issues with the then Chief Minister and in the Legislative Assembly but there is no positive outcome of the same although Housing and Urban Development Department remained with the BJP Minister”.
The condition of health sector during the tenure of former MLA remained worst despite the fact health portfolio was also with the BJP Minister during the PDP-BJP Coalition Government. What to talk of Primary Health Centres even the District Hospital Doda was found reeling under shortage of specialist doctors.
“Despite being well versed with the problems of health sector in the constituency the former MLA failed to persuade his party Minister for overcoming the deficiency of the doctors and para-medical staff due to which majority of the PHCs are merely acting as refererral centres for the patients”, people complained.
“Isn’t it the reflection on the performance of the former MLA that during his three years tenure he could not manage posting of even one Radiologist in the District Hospital in the absence of which majority of the patients are either referred to Kishtwar District Hospital or Jammu as services of Radiologists are also not available in the private sector”, said some doctors in the District Hospital on the condition of anonymity.
Another shocking aspect is that there is only one Anesthesiologist in the District Hospital and schedule of the surgeries is worked out keeping in view his availability.
Moreover, Accidental Hospital at Khellani inaugurated in April 2017 has yet not been provided with adequate number of doctors and para-medical staff. The then Health Minister Bali Bhagat in the presence of former MLA Shakti Raj Parihar had announced at the time of inauguration of Accidental Hospital that adequate manpower will be made available in shortest possible time to run the hospital smoothly, people who were witness to the event of April 2017 said.
They, however, remarked, it seems that the only intention was to get the name inscribed on the plaque otherwise MLA should have exerted enough pressure on party’s Minister for getting adequate manpower sanctioned and posted in shortest possible time”.
“If this is the scenario in District and Accidental Hospitals what could be the situation in other health institutions can be easily gauged”, people of Khellani said.
While people of Jodhpur and Trown appreciated Shakti Raj Parihar for getting sanctioned upgradation of schools, the inhabitants of other areas complained that those schools which were approved for upgradation by the Cabinet during the National Conference-Congress Coalition Government were ignored by the PDP-BJP Coalition Government as BJP MLA preferred not to pay any serious attention towards the same despite being aware of the fact that follow-up action even on the decision of previous Government would have facilitated in providing hassle free education to the students.
“Women’s Degree College at Doda is the long pending demand of the people so as to minimize the difficulties of the female students but no serious attention was paid towards this aspect by the former MLA”, people said, adding “even no follow-up action on the announcements made by the then Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti like construction of community halls in Route, Behote and Batakund villages has been ensured by our former representative”.
People also highlighted the issue of water crisis in many areas of the constituency and said, “it was officially stated by the former MLA that adequate steps will be taken to augment water supply in the stressed areas and around 20 water supply schemes will be completed by the end of 2018 under National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) but the prevailing situation in several parts of the constituency is the testimony of his failure on this front”.
The other issues which were highlighted by the people included delay in completion of building of Government Polytechnic, Sports Stadium, roads under PMGSY, lack of focus on Doda-Kapran road and upgradation of all deserving schools etc,
When contacted, former MLA Doda constituency Shakti Raj Parihar claimed that no stone was left unturned to meet the aspirations of the people. “The water crisis has been resolved up to large extent and for those areas where local sources are not available schemes have been prepared and submitted for funding”, he added.
About the power sector, he said that Khellani Grid was upgraded and 144 transformers were made available to the people through Constituency Development Fund. In road sector, condition of Batote-Kishtwar National Highway was improved, around 70 kilometers road length blacktopped and several important bridges like Ganpat Bridge and Seva Dal Bridge were thrown open for normal traffic.
While admitting problems in the health sector, he said, “recently large number of doctors were posted in majority of the health institutions in entire Doda district and this step will help in providing better healthcare to the people”. However, his claims are unfounded as huge number of Medical Officers have been deployed in different districts including Doda only due to the efforts of the Governor’s Administration.
“Three years was a small period to completely redress the issues of the people but still all out efforts were made to come up to their expectations”, he further said.
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