Raebareli (UP), Sep 9: Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday raised the poor condition of roads built under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in his constituency, Raebareli, during a DISHA meeting here, displaying photographs of pothole-riddled stretches and seeking details of the agencies responsible for their construction.
Gandhi, who is on a two-day visit to Raebareli, attended the District Development Coordination and Monitoring Committee (DISHA) meeting at the collectorate along with the Congress’ Amethi MP Kishori Lal Sharma and other elected representatives and officials to review implementation of central government schemes.
A nominated member of the DISHA committee, Umesh Bahadur Singh alias Bablu Singh, said, “Gandhi placed photographs of damaged PMGSY roads before the officials and also named specific roads while seeking action.”
The PMGSY executive engineer assured the meeting that the roads would be repaired, Singh said. Gandhi also stressed that roads constructed by different agencies should be clearly identified and records maintained showing which agency was responsible for each road.
“The road issue was raised after Gandhi examined the condition of roads in the district and presented photographic evidence during the meeting, rather than merely seeking information from officials,” Singh said.
After the meeting, Gandhi left the collectorate without speaking to reporters.
“Earlier on Wednesday, Gandhi met Congress functionaries and representatives of several organisations at the Bhuemau guest house. People from Raebareli, Amethi and Sultanpur also met him and raised issues concerning their respective areas,” city Congress committee vice-president Sunil Singh Bhadauria said.
Gandhi also handed over two ambulances to the health department and inaugurated development projects worth around Rs 3 crore, party leaders said.
The DISHA meeting was attended by UP Food and Civil Supplies Minister Manoj Kumar Pandey, Horticulture Minister Dinesh Pratap Singh and other elected representatives and officials.
Pandey later told reporters that the meeting covered various central government schemes, including food security.
As many as 21.92 lakh people in Raebareli are currently receiving ration under the government’s food security programme, he said.
On roads, Pandey said, “Around 16,000 small and major roads had been constructed in the district over the past five years.”
Gandhi had arrived in Raebareli on Tuesday evening and had met traders, including general, bullion and pharmacy traders, as well as lawyers, to discuss their concerns, according to local Congress leaders.
Earlier on Wednesday, SP MLAs Rahul Lodhi and Shyam Sundar Bhati held a protest outside the collectorate ahead of the DISHA meeting, alleging that the district panchayat was ignoring local issues.
They carried placards highlighting school closures, alleged encroachment by land mafias, false cases, farmers’ problems, unemployment and poor basic amenities.
Speaking to reporters, Lodhi alleged that development work was not being carried out in the district and accused the BJP-led government of harming children’s future.
He claimed that a large number of schools had been closed in his Harachandpur constituency and alleged that land was being encroached upon without adequate action.
Lodhi said the SP legislators would raise these issues at the DISHA meeting and question the district panchayat leadership over its alleged inaction. He also questioned what local authorities were doing when Gandhi was raising issues concerning Raebareli in Parliament.
The visit has also drawn political attention ahead of the upcoming UP Assembly elections, with party functionaries and leaders from neighbouring Amethi and Sultanpur also meeting the former Congress president. (PTI)
