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Uma`s development agenda ranges from absurd to the weird: The Indian Express
Bhopal, Feb 03: Fifty days may be too short a period to look at the report card of a government. But mid-way through Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee`s 100-day deadline for performance, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti`s record is dotted with unusual announcements, bizarre projects- and anything but development.
Bhopal, Feb 03: Fifty days may be too short a period to look at the report card of a government. But mid-way through Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s 100-day deadline for performance, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti’s record is dotted with unusual announcements, bizarre projects— and anything but development.
The latest is the re-christening of Bhopal, the state capital. Speaking at a function in the city today, she said that Calcutta has not remained Calcutta, Bombay has not remained Bombay and neither will Bhopal remain Bhopal. It was a clear indication that the Sangh Parivar’s long-standing demand for renaming Bhopal as Bhojpal is likely to materialise soon.
The statement by the chief minister, elected after a campaign focussed on road and electricity, is not an aberration, it follows a pattern. Here’s a look at the highlights of the first 50 days of the Uma Bharti regime. Cow’s that: Through much of her campaign, Uma Bharti had exhorted voters: ‘Din ki pehli roti gai ke naam’. Shortly after being elected, she outlined her dream of a state dotted with gaushalas. The proposals provide for a gaushala (cowshed) for every cluster of 10-12 villages. The gaushalas would initially be supported by the government but would soon become self-reliant. Bharti, claiming inspiration from Holland, said these gaushalas would be established on riverbanks and would also promote tourism. She added the government would use designations borrowed from the Shrimad Bhagvad, which describes officials according to the number of cows under their care, for every rank up to the level of the Chief Minister. The construction of a gaushala at the CM house kicked off the project.
‘‘Minister Ramakant Tiwari has been given full responsibilty for developing a cow-based economy in the state. The gaushalas will be part of a comprehensive model of development,’’ says Bharti. Cow dung will generate power, fertilizers, agarbattis and cow urine will be used to make pesticides and medicine.
Riversutra: Beginning with a midnight dip in the river on January 5, Bharti has unveiled the second part of the state’s thrust on development. This includes the declaration of special status for two pilgrim centres on the river—Amarkantak, the source, and the temple town of Maheshwar. Amarkantak lies in the heart of Gond and Baiga country, and Maheswar is known for its Muslim weavers. Neither segment of the population is likely to welcome the imposition of a meat- and egg-free regime. Appropriately enough, Bharti made this announcement on Naramada Jayanti following a Cabinet meeting in Maheshwar. The ministers also made full use of the opportunity by taking a dip in the river.
Gurus and Goddesses: Bharti has taken off from where Digvijay left off. She waited till the inauspicious month of Paush got over before shifting into the official CM residence on January 26. The ceremony was attended by her Guru, Swami Visheswar Tirath Maharaj, who was flown in from Udupi, and by Govindacharya. The media was kept out probably to ensure events such as the Bhopal SP saluting her guru were not captured on camera. Before she moved in, a temple on the front lawns and a havankund were added to this 70-year-old bungalow. It is still not clear who gave permission for the gaushala and the temple. Meanwhile, even the devout have had a tough time keeping with the religious associations that determine new policies. At the beginning of the nine-day "Gupt Navratris" nine women inspectors were appointed as police station in-charges to ‘‘symbolise the nine different incarnations of the female deity’’.
Communal Harmony: One of the boasts of the Digvijay regime was the uninterrupted 10 years of communal peace in the state. The violence against Christians in Jhabua quickly dispelled illusion that the new government would ensure the same. First, wrong information, claiming there was firing from within a church, was supplied to the media at a press conference addressed by Uma Bharti. Then, two ministers visited Jhabua and gave a clean chit to the Sangh organisations without meeting a single Christian victim. Last week, Bharti herself visited Jhabua, met some of the victims, ordered a CID probe but virtually rendered it useless by stating Hindus had displayed patience and tolerance despite provocation.
Transfers and postings: So far, nearly 200 of the 275-odd IAS officers in the state, and over a 100 of the 300-odd IPS officers in the state have been transferred. Several officials have been transferred thrice in these 50 days. Now at the end of this record-breaking spree, the government has finally thought it fit to announce a transfer policy for other employees in the state. From April 15 to June 15, transfers within a district can be effected solely by the minister in charge of the district.
Power Play: Within days of taking over, Uma Bharti went out of her way to read out a High Court judgment to the media. The judgement was severely critical of the Digvijay regime’s move to grant a Rs 1,354-crore waiver to farmers for three-year period from 2001 to 2003 and had observed, ‘‘We prima-facie hold that the waiver will be at the expense of common man and is without budgetary sanction and cannot be in public interest.’’ When The Indian Express reported on January 8 that with the Lok Sabha polls looming the new government had overcome all previous qualms to endorse Digvijay’s freebies, sources close to the CM denied the report but refused to go on record. Twenty days later, the government quietly issued a press note stating that the decision had indeed been taken ‘‘in the interest of farmers after extensive discussions with organizations of farmers.’’
Bharti, however, feels she is on track. She says she has intitiated several measures to improve the power and roads situation in the state. ‘‘For several years, MP had not been getting its due share of Central funds due to a failure to present the state’s case adequately. We have rectified this... we have obtained Rs 720 crore under the PM’s rural roads scheme and another Rs 740 crore for irrigation schemes,’’ she says.
‘‘We have also got permission for open market borrowing of another Rs 800 crore that will go towards strengthening the infrastructure. Proposals worth another Rs 1200 crore are being processed. All this will strengthen our case of being an industry-friendly state,’’ she adds.
The Chief Minister, however, says the need is to work out an alternative eco-friendly mode of development. And that begins with the cow. ‘‘We are laying stress on the Narmada valley and a cow-based economy,’’ she says.
The statement by the chief minister, elected after a campaign focussed on road and electricity, is not an aberration, it follows a pattern. Here’s a look at the highlights of the first 50 days of the Uma Bharti regime. Cow’s that: Through much of her campaign, Uma Bharti had exhorted voters: ‘Din ki pehli roti gai ke naam’. Shortly after being elected, she outlined her dream of a state dotted with gaushalas. The proposals provide for a gaushala (cowshed) for every cluster of 10-12 villages. The gaushalas would initially be supported by the government but would soon become self-reliant. Bharti, claiming inspiration from Holland, said these gaushalas would be established on riverbanks and would also promote tourism. She added the government would use designations borrowed from the Shrimad Bhagvad, which describes officials according to the number of cows under their care, for every rank up to the level of the Chief Minister. The construction of a gaushala at the CM house kicked off the project.
‘‘Minister Ramakant Tiwari has been given full responsibilty for developing a cow-based economy in the state. The gaushalas will be part of a comprehensive model of development,’’ says Bharti. Cow dung will generate power, fertilizers, agarbattis and cow urine will be used to make pesticides and medicine.
Riversutra: Beginning with a midnight dip in the river on January 5, Bharti has unveiled the second part of the state’s thrust on development. This includes the declaration of special status for two pilgrim centres on the river—Amarkantak, the source, and the temple town of Maheshwar. Amarkantak lies in the heart of Gond and Baiga country, and Maheswar is known for its Muslim weavers. Neither segment of the population is likely to welcome the imposition of a meat- and egg-free regime. Appropriately enough, Bharti made this announcement on Naramada Jayanti following a Cabinet meeting in Maheshwar. The ministers also made full use of the opportunity by taking a dip in the river.
Gurus and Goddesses: Bharti has taken off from where Digvijay left off. She waited till the inauspicious month of Paush got over before shifting into the official CM residence on January 26. The ceremony was attended by her Guru, Swami Visheswar Tirath Maharaj, who was flown in from Udupi, and by Govindacharya. The media was kept out probably to ensure events such as the Bhopal SP saluting her guru were not captured on camera. Before she moved in, a temple on the front lawns and a havankund were added to this 70-year-old bungalow. It is still not clear who gave permission for the gaushala and the temple. Meanwhile, even the devout have had a tough time keeping with the religious associations that determine new policies. At the beginning of the nine-day "Gupt Navratris" nine women inspectors were appointed as police station in-charges to ‘‘symbolise the nine different incarnations of the female deity’’.
Communal Harmony: One of the boasts of the Digvijay regime was the uninterrupted 10 years of communal peace in the state. The violence against Christians in Jhabua quickly dispelled illusion that the new government would ensure the same. First, wrong information, claiming there was firing from within a church, was supplied to the media at a press conference addressed by Uma Bharti. Then, two ministers visited Jhabua and gave a clean chit to the Sangh organisations without meeting a single Christian victim. Last week, Bharti herself visited Jhabua, met some of the victims, ordered a CID probe but virtually rendered it useless by stating Hindus had displayed patience and tolerance despite provocation.
Transfers and postings: So far, nearly 200 of the 275-odd IAS officers in the state, and over a 100 of the 300-odd IPS officers in the state have been transferred. Several officials have been transferred thrice in these 50 days. Now at the end of this record-breaking spree, the government has finally thought it fit to announce a transfer policy for other employees in the state. From April 15 to June 15, transfers within a district can be effected solely by the minister in charge of the district.
Power Play: Within days of taking over, Uma Bharti went out of her way to read out a High Court judgment to the media. The judgement was severely critical of the Digvijay regime’s move to grant a Rs 1,354-crore waiver to farmers for three-year period from 2001 to 2003 and had observed, ‘‘We prima-facie hold that the waiver will be at the expense of common man and is without budgetary sanction and cannot be in public interest.’’ When The Indian Express reported on January 8 that with the Lok Sabha polls looming the new government had overcome all previous qualms to endorse Digvijay’s freebies, sources close to the CM denied the report but refused to go on record. Twenty days later, the government quietly issued a press note stating that the decision had indeed been taken ‘‘in the interest of farmers after extensive discussions with organizations of farmers.’’
Bharti, however, feels she is on track. She says she has intitiated several measures to improve the power and roads situation in the state. ‘‘For several years, MP had not been getting its due share of Central funds due to a failure to present the state’s case adequately. We have rectified this... we have obtained Rs 720 crore under the PM’s rural roads scheme and another Rs 740 crore for irrigation schemes,’’ she says.
‘‘We have also got permission for open market borrowing of another Rs 800 crore that will go towards strengthening the infrastructure. Proposals worth another Rs 1200 crore are being processed. All this will strengthen our case of being an industry-friendly state,’’ she adds.
The Chief Minister, however, says the need is to work out an alternative eco-friendly mode of development. And that begins with the cow. ‘‘We are laying stress on the Narmada valley and a cow-based economy,’’ she says.