Indore: The newly elected mayor of Indore and BJP’s surprise candidate Pushyamitra Bhargava is all set to take oath on Friday. He may be a fresh face, but no stranger to politics. It’s just that now with politics comes responsibilities and stardom. An avid swimmer who feels that he can no longer eat golgappas on the streets without thronging for selfies, Bhargava has set his priorities straight. they talked at length Ashok Kumar Yadav, Part:
> From legal practitioner to full time politician. How has the change been?
Politics is not new to me. I was active in student politics. I also worked as an executive member of ABVP. As Deputy Advocate General or Additional Advocate General, I had to face a lot of political conversation. But being mayor is new to me.
How did people’s aspirations change during the election campaign and after the victory?
n people Met with a smile during election campaign. But after victory they look at me with hope. Thousands of people come with their little problems and expect me to solve them. I haven’t met as many people in the last six months as I have in the last 15 days.
Q. What solution do you propose?
n time and team management are the two t’s which i am going to use to solve the problems of the citizens. There are people who want to work for the city with zero selfishness and I want to provide them a platform to work for the betterment of the city.
> So, what are your priorities as mayor?
Traffic, sports and door-to-door administration are on the list of priorities – traffic being the most important. We will run campaigns to create traffic awareness with a focus on encouraging citizens to use public transport. A new sports complex will be developed to promote sports and support budding players. Our objective is to set up an additional monitoring system to ensure timely redressal of citizens’ grievances related to citizen services.
> What about water? Every year people cry about it.
n People should have a sense of belonging. They should be educated about optimum utilization of water resources. There is no water crisis, but we need to convince the citizens that they should not waste it. The distribution of Narmada water through new overhead tanks constructed under the second phase of AMRUT mission will also be done on priority basis.
IMC gangs have become notorious for cracking down on residents. Some people call it ‘hooliganism’yellow gang,
n rules to be applied. There is a thin line between awareness and punitive action. One should behave very carefully. If people do not understand even after repeated warnings, it calls for a change of tone. The Yellow Gang of IMC made Indore the cleanest city in the country for five consecutive times and maintained it. IMC’s Safai Karamcharis are doing everything possible to help the people during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was the one who performed the last rites of the bodies of those who died of the infection. We should respect them. We cannot judge the entire IMC workforce for the actions of some notorious elements.
> You were a surprise candidate. Though BJP won, the vote share fell. Is it because of displeasure over the decision?
There was no mayor for more than two years because of the delay in the election. This created a huge communication gap. People were dissatisfied and angry. Obviously this has resulted in a fall in the vote share. people never want to support Congress, and that’s what he did in this election and supported the BJP. We fought elections on real issues and development and not on freebies or fake announcements.
> What kind of support have you received from your family?
n I don’t have any free time. My family got used to my old routine. They will need time to adjust. He is my backbone, especially my father. He pushed me into the RSS, supported me when I joined student politics and taught me to fight for the right cause. During the election campaign my wife and brother stood by me the whole time.
> How do they face the new-found stardom now?
n My personal space has shrunk. I cannot go out and eat golgappas on the roadside. People recognize and stop for selfies. This is new. But my family has not faced any problem. My father, a doctor, visits his clinic; Mother takes care of the house and wife.., she was practicing law, will soon resume her work.
> From legal practitioner to full time politician. How has the change been?
Politics is not new to me. I was active in student politics. I also worked as an executive member of ABVP. As Deputy Advocate General or Additional Advocate General, I had to face a lot of political conversation. But being mayor is new to me.
How did people’s aspirations change during the election campaign and after the victory?
n people Met with a smile during election campaign. But after victory they look at me with hope. Thousands of people come with their little problems and expect me to solve them. I haven’t met as many people in the last six months as I have in the last 15 days.
Q. What solution do you propose?
n time and team management are the two t’s which i am going to use to solve the problems of the citizens. There are people who want to work for the city with zero selfishness and I want to provide them a platform to work for the betterment of the city.
> So, what are your priorities as mayor?
Traffic, sports and door-to-door administration are on the list of priorities – traffic being the most important. We will run campaigns to create traffic awareness with a focus on encouraging citizens to use public transport. A new sports complex will be developed to promote sports and support budding players. Our objective is to set up an additional monitoring system to ensure timely redressal of citizens’ grievances related to citizen services.
> What about water? Every year people cry about it.
n People should have a sense of belonging. They should be educated about optimum utilization of water resources. There is no water crisis, but we need to convince the citizens that they should not waste it. The distribution of Narmada water through new overhead tanks constructed under the second phase of AMRUT mission will also be done on priority basis.
IMC gangs have become notorious for cracking down on residents. Some people call it ‘hooliganism’yellow gang,
n rules to be applied. There is a thin line between awareness and punitive action. One should behave very carefully. If people do not understand even after repeated warnings, it calls for a change of tone. The Yellow Gang of IMC made Indore the cleanest city in the country for five consecutive times and maintained it. IMC’s Safai Karamcharis are doing everything possible to help the people during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was the one who performed the last rites of the bodies of those who died of the infection. We should respect them. We cannot judge the entire IMC workforce for the actions of some notorious elements.
> You were a surprise candidate. Though BJP won, the vote share fell. Is it because of displeasure over the decision?
There was no mayor for more than two years because of the delay in the election. This created a huge communication gap. People were dissatisfied and angry. Obviously this has resulted in a fall in the vote share. people never want to support Congress, and that’s what he did in this election and supported the BJP. We fought elections on real issues and development and not on freebies or fake announcements.
> What kind of support have you received from your family?
n I don’t have any free time. My family got used to my old routine. They will need time to adjust. He is my backbone, especially my father. He pushed me into the RSS, supported me when I joined student politics and taught me to fight for the right cause. During the election campaign my wife and brother stood by me the whole time.
> How do they face the new-found stardom now?
n My personal space has shrunk. I cannot go out and eat golgappas on the roadside. People recognize and stop for selfies. This is new. But my family has not faced any problem. My father, a doctor, visits his clinic; Mother takes care of the house and wife.., she was practicing law, will soon resume her work.