Friday, 15 September 2023 | Gajendra Singh Negi | DEHRADUN
Rough ride
The denizens of Dehradun are ecstatic over their city being the host of the mega global investors summit scheduled in December meant to give a much- needed push to the economy of the State. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is hoping to rope in investment to the tune of a whopping Rs 2.5 Lakh crore from the summit. However, the economy is not appealing to the Doonites as much as the prospect of the city getting a facelift for the mega event. As it happens every year, monsoon rains have wreaked havoc on the roads across the State and the condition is worse in the capital. The never- ending works of the Smart City project have further aggravated the pathetic condition of the roads. Yawning potholes and craters have opened up and at places the roads are literally non-existent. Compulsion to travel on such horrendous roads has been forcing people to throng the orthopaedic clinics and the harassed residents are impatiently awaiting the government’s preparations for the investors summit which will involve repair of the roads.
Pritam power
The recent inclusion of senior leader of Uttarakhand Congress and six-time MLA from Chakrata Pritam Singh in the revamped central election committee (CEC) of the grand old party has immensely enthused the camp followers of this veteran, soft spoken leader. The leaders owing allegiance to Singh are holding programmes to celebrate the honour bestowed by the party leadership on the former PCC president. The delight of the Pritam camp is understandable against the backdrop of the growing impression that Singh was being sidelined by the party high command since he was asked to vacate the post of the PCC president before the 2022 assembly election ostensibly on the insistence of the Harish Rawat camp. After the party’s debacle in the assembly election, Singh opened a front against the in- charge of Uttarakhand Congress and it was speculated that Singh, in desperation, might switch over to BJP. In a fine balancing act which has raised the stature of Pritam Singh in Uttarakhand Congress, the party high command has now included Singh into the apex body of the party which deliberates and approves the list of party candidates for the Lok Sabha and state assembly elections.
Fleecing fun
Many private hospitals and clinics have found an excellent business in fleecing the hapless people now reeling under the dengue menace in the State. The vector-borne disease has reached epidemic proportions in many parts of the State with the provisional State capital Dehradun being the worst affected as cases are being reported from every nook and corner of the city. In such a situation, many medical practitioners are cashing on the patients’ predicament with the dengue scare deeply set in the collective mind of the people. The Health department has put up a capping on the charges of investigations and treatment, but it has failed in enforcing its regulations due to which many hospitals are looting people with impunity. As is the yearly practice during the dengue season, the Health department of Dehradun is engaged in a cover-up exercise. It avers that there are only 279 active cases of the disease in Dehradun, a claim which gets deflated when one witnesses the huge patient load, lack of ICU and severe bed crunch in different hospitals of the city and the wild rush for life -saving platelets in the blood banks.
