Dharamsala: why have a MC shorn of powers?

When Dharamsala town was made into a Municipal Corporation (MC) and Palampur was not, some of us had heartburn for ignoring Palampur. But by and large, we were  happy for Dharamsala for getting this elevated status. Similar emotions came to the fore when Dharamsala got another gift: a smart city status. We were pleased that if not Palampur, at least a neighbouring town which houses our district headquarters and is home for the saintly, His Holiness the Dalai Lama to boast and feel proud of – and justly so - will now be on the march towards rapid and ‘smart’ development. But then loud proclamations and grand rhetoric are one thing and executing proper developmental reforms on the ground quite another.

I was horrified to read a news item in the Tribune last week about how the MC is being emasculated and stripped of its powers. It is common knowledge how the powerful lobby of hoteliers have flouted rules with impunity to usurp government lands to raise illegal structures, cut down trees and made transgressions of several kinds. Shimla, Solan, Kasauli, Manali all have paid heavy environmental costs for this reckless land grab by unscrupulous, greedy elements. And Dharamsala is therefore no exception. Once such a charming hill down, the land-grabbers in cahoots with the politicians have over the years robbed it of its natural assets and contributed to the pollution, congestion and urban chaos. McLeodganj, such a delightful tourist hub, has been the worst sufferer.

Therefore, not surprisingly, when the well-meaning MC under its CEO Mr Lalit Jain tried to stem the rot and rein in the offending law breaking hoteliers by initiating punitive measures, their hackles were raised. Alarmed and upset, they ganged up against the MC. After all they are powerful people. Some of them are politicians and therefore, in fact, ‘power’ itself. How could a new MC and its chief have the temerity to upset their applecart? Using their clout and power they pulled the strings. Result? Acting with great speed and alacrity the MC was stripped of its powers. And now according to the new dispensation the powers to check illegal constructions, encroachments, tree felling and such like misdeeds have instead been vested with the government’s very own department: Town and country Planning (TCP). And about the functioning of this department you know as well as I do. Now those hoteliers can breathe easy, celebrate, keep going with their illegalities and cock a snook at Mr Jain and the MC. The only power that the poor MC has been left with is… ha, ha, ha… garbage disposal. And as the news item goes, the MC says that it hardly has the necessary manpower to deliver on this assignment even. If the MC were to be turned into a cripple, powerless body as it stands now, what was the blessed, mighty need to create one, may I please ask?

So dear Palampurwallas, don’t feel any sense of loss for our town not coming under the ambit of a MC, if the MCs are to function like zombies as the above case amply demonstrates. As I have stated earlier, if the citizenry is sensitive, alert, vigilant and takes active interest in the wholesome development of the town, we can make Palampur both ‘smart’ as well as beautiful by striking a fine balance between modernisation and ecology, for:

‘Development’ is a must,
But environment should come first.'

                                

A view of McLeodganj 

                               

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Quotes of the week

Human race is doomed if we do not colonise the Moon and the Mars: Astrophysicist Stephan Hawking (Deccan Chronicle; gnews)

Not enough fighter jets is akin to playing cricket with just 7 players: Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa ( The Indian express; gnews)

Saw father die in front of my eyes: Sabira, daughter of man lynched in Rajasthan:The Indian Express (gnews)

                                              
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Random headlines

NASA launches world's lightest satellite designed by 18-yr-old TN student (Times of India; gnews)

NASA wants to colonise Mars soon, says US Space scientist (Deccan Chronicle; gnews)

Asteroid collision with Earth inevitable:experts (The Hindu; gnews)

66 million displaced people: Human cost of war in 2016 (India Today; gnews)

A third of the world's  people already face deadly heat waves. It could be nearly three-quarters by 2100 (Washington Post; gnews)

Huge forest fire kills 62, injures 50 in Portugal (NDTV; gnews)

Governments using Facebook, Twitter for promoting lies, propaganda:report (Business Standard; gnews)

Bengaluru cops heroes for allowing ambulance ahead of Presidnet's convoy (NDTV; gnews)

Palampur provides the perfect setting to undertake a series of volunteer sessions (Economic Times; gnews)

New 3-in-1 blood test for precision prostate cancer therapies (The Indian Express; gnews)

Yoga, meditation reduce risk of cancer and depression by reversing DNA (Deccan Chronicle; gnews)

Coconut oil 'as unhealthy as beef fat and butter' (BBC News; gnews)

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