Gujarat govt sits on Bhuj's future

Gujarat govt sits on Bhuj's future
DARSHAN DESAI

GANDHINAGAR, MARCH 14: When the Keshubhai Patel government in Gujarat gets confused, it appoints a committee to further confuse and delay the issue. So, now we have a new committee to settle what is to be done with quake-battered Bhuj. The decision to form the committee is said to have taken eight hours of hair-splitting deliberations late on Monday night.

In the meantime, Bhuj is running out of patience thanks to petty politics of leaders from Kutch as well as Gandhinagar's dithering in coming out with a bold decision on either relocating or developing the quake-ravaged town.

Hundreds of people there held a rally on Sunday and threatened to occupy their damaged houses if the government delayed making a decision on the issue after March 25. Speakers at the rally warned that the Chief Minister would be responsible for the consequences.

It has been over a month that the government is being pulled from different sides with a variety of opinions on reconstructing the town. All opinions arediscussed before deferring decisions. Options are then further discussed. Elaborate meetings at the Sachivalaya have borne no results.ØBesides forming a committee of ministers, Suresh Mehta, Vajubhai Vala and Nitin Patel, the meeting on Monday took a more amusing decision: hike the labour charge for debris removal from Rs 40 to Rs 50. Debris removal in the four worst-affected towns of Kutch totally depends on their relocation and there will be little need to clear the wreckage if the towns are shifted. At the same time, official sources also concede that relocating the towns will be cheaper, faster and easier than cleaning up the debris.

This is the scene at Gandhinagar. In Kutch, leaders including Industries Minister Suresh Mehta, state Assembly Speaker Dhirubhai Shah, an MLA from Rapar, and the powerful MLA and Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation chairman Mukesh Jhaveri, are singing different tunes.

Politically divided, their opinions too differ. While Mehta is of the firm view that Bhuj should be relocated and developed into a modern city, his political adversaries -- Shah and Jhaveri -- have been insisting that the debris should be removed and the devastated old Bhuj should be set up at its original location.

Both the groups are adamant on their stance, and have been exchanging heated arguments in the recent official meetings. The two groups also attribute motives to each other's taking their stance.

Those in favour of relocation allege that Jhaveri and others are acting at the behest of the rich owners of commercial establishments and buildings, which have not been damaged too much. Those against claim that the builders' lobby and land sharks are interested in relocating the city to make a quick buck. The meetings continue.