LUCKNOW: 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, 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. UP Food and Civil Supplies Minister Manoj Kumar Pandey, Horticulture Minister Dinesh Pratap Singh, other elected representatives and officials were also present to review implementation of central government schemes.
A nominated member of the DISHA committee, Umesh Bahadur Singh alias Bablu Singh, said: "Rahul Gandhi placed photographs of damaged PMGSY roads before the officials and also named specific roads while seeking action."
While explaining the damage, the PMGSY executive engineer assured the meeting that the roads would be repaired, Singh said.
Rahul Gandhi also stressed the need to identify the different agencies engaged in road construction. He said records showing which agency was responsible for each road should be maintained.
"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.
UP minister Dinesh Pratap Singh criticised Gandhi's approach, alleging that he appeared more interested in finding faults in government schemes than in reviewing their implementation.
Singh, in a statement, said that when the discussion on the "Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao" scheme began, Gandhi asked an official what the scheme entailed and later sought details of the expenditure on publicity.
The minister said that Gandhi seems to be attending the DISHA meeting more as "Leader of Opposition than as Raebareli MP and chairperson of the committee."
Earlier on Wednesday, the Congress MP met party functionaries and representatives of several organisations at the Bhuemau guest house. People from Rae Bareli, Amethi and Sultanpur also met him and raised issues concerning their respective areas.
Rahul also handed over two ambulances to the health department and inaugurated development projects worth around Rs 3 crore, Congress leaders said.
Pandey later told reporters that the meeting covered various central government schemes, including food security. As many as 21.92 lakh people in Rae Bareli were 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 arrived in Rae Bareli on Tuesday evening and met traders, including general, bullion and pharmacy traders, as well as lawyers, to discuss their concerns, according to local Congress leaders.
Earlier on Wednesday, Samajwadi Party 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.
The visit has also drawn political attention ahead of the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, with party functionaries and leaders from neighbouring Amethi and Sultanpur also meeting the former Congress president.
Meanwhile, Gandhi began Wednesday with a ‘Janata Darbar’, where residents raised civic and development-related concerns. Samajwadi Party leaders and workers, Mahila Congress representatives and members of several local organisations also met Gandhi during the interaction.
Akhilesh Mahi, state secretary of the Samajwadi Party’s Mulayam Singh Youth Brigade, sought Gandhi’s support for the construction of a memorial and a public square in honour of Rajendra Yadav, a soldier from Rae Bareli who was killed in the 1999 Kargil War.
Mahi said the district had yet to establish a statue or memorial commemorating Yadav’s sacrifice. He claimed Rahul Gandhi had assured him of prompt action on the request.
The SP leader also expressed confidence that the Congress-SP alliance would mount a strong challenge to the Bharatiya Janata Party and secure a majority in the next Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.