Punjab CM asks DCs to convene meetings in villages
Darpan News Desk IANS, 04 Apr, 2022 11:35 AM
Chandigarh, April 4 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday asked Deputy Commissioners to regularly convene outdoor meetings in the field, especially in villages, to ensure on-the-spot redressal of people's grievances.
Chairing a meeting of the Deputy Commissioners, he asked them to organise special camps, along with their team of officials, in a particular village or town at their doorsteps for prompt resolution of pending issues or problems faced by the public in a result-oriented manner.
Terming the Deputy Commissioners as eyes and ears of the administration, Mann said: "You are the real face of the government because people have direct interface with you rather than us (government) as they repose unflinching trust and confidence in you."
He also urged them to conduct surprise checks at the 'Saanjh Kendras' as they have been primarily set up for the convenience of the public and asked them to provide citizen-centric services.
In recognition of the best performance of Divisional Commissioners, DCs, SSPs, SDMs and other field officials, Mann also announced such officers or officials will be honoured with the 'Best Performing Award' to further motivate them to serve the people with missionary zeal.
In a bid to bring the drug addicts in the mainstream, he gave a target to start and upgrade all the drug de-addiction and rehabilitation centres in all districts within a month so as to effectively rehabilitate the youth, who had gone astray and fell prey to the vice.
He said since the rehabilitation of drug addicts is of paramount significance and would be instrumental to lead them a life of self-respect.
The Chief Minister also assured the Deputy Commissioners of complete autonomy to discharge their duties to the best of their abilities and capacities without any political pressure.
He, however, said that due respect and basic courtesies must be extended to the people's representatives and the common man being a prime duty.
Earlier, Dhesi sent a letter, signed by over 100 British MPs and Lords, to Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the ongoing farmers' protests, asking him to raise this matter with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi when they next liaise.
The Chief Minister told the media here that for more than a year since the Central government had brought three agriculture laws for the benefit of farmers, especially small and marginal ones, unfortunately, some farmer unions had been protesting on the Delhi borders.
While the Centre's announcement to repeal three farm laws is seen as a political decision with eye on forthcoming assembly polls in five states, the BJP claims that it has nothing to do with elections as the party has won many states after laws were passed by the Parliament.
On January 12 this year, the Supreme Court had stayed the implementation of the three farm laws after scores of farmers from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh pitched their tents on various Delhi borders in protest against the three laws.
A nine-member committee of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), the consortium of protesting farmers' bodies, will be meeting on Saturday, and it is likely to put forth four main demands. The meeting will also decide whether the SKM will go ahead with the originally announced 'March Towards Delhi' programme on November 26.
Congress legislator and Punjab unit party president Navjot Singh Sidhu on Friday said the minimum support price (MSP) is the bigger issue than farm laws as it is the lifeline of farmers.
