Bijay Charak
JAMMU, Sept 27: The political sway of Delhi Public School management can be gauged from the fact that a proposal to construct separate road for the school was mooted by former PWD Minister, which would only be materialized by dismantling of more than 100 households.
Astonishingly, DPS is a private owned school, but the proposal of separate road was mooted by PWD and entire expenditure would have been bear by department instead of private school management.
Though the proposal has been shelved due to change in portfolio of concerned ministry but the proposal is still haunting the residents of Prem Nagar area, as they are being scared that it could be executed anytime.
Sources informed Early Times that during the tenure of GM Saroori as Road and Building Minister, who was close to the management of DPS, a proposal to construct separate road for school was mooted.
"GM Saroori was very interested for construction of road from DPS to Prem Nagar, so that there will be no jam like situation on residency road", sources said, adding that according to proposal more than one hundred houses would have been dismantled by PWD department for construction of road.
They further informed that though the road would have been constructed only for DPS school which was a private owned school but the affluent management, which had strong political links with former R&B Minister GM Saroori, asked him to made a proposal. "To benefit a private school, R&B department mooted a proposal and also started survey of area, but when the financial implications of proposal were judged it was a very costly affair for PWD", sources said.
They further said that due to huge financial implications for construction of road and for paying compensation to habitants, the proposal took some time, but in the meantime R&B Minister GM Saroori, lost the portfolio.
"After GM Saroori's exit from the R&B Ministry the proposal has been shelved, but still we are afraid that the proposal can resurrect anytime", residents of area said.
Castigating the state government, an official seeking anomity said that to benefit an influential school like DPS, they had made a proposal to construct separate road anytime. "If proposed road is only for DPS then why PWD department mooted a proposal and was agreed to bear the expenditure. It was actually a big deal between concerned Minister and school management that to benefit a private owned school, PWD department had made the proposal", he said.
A resident of area Rakesh Kumar said that when the proposal was made by PWD department, views of locals were not taken by department. "It is very sad to notice that to benefit a politically affluent class, such type of proposal were made, which will leave hundreds of families homeless", he said, adding that there were apprehensions that the proposal would be materialize in future. |
