"All Government decisions are taken by Sukhbir Badal and his father merely puts his stamp wherever required"

•Nitin Jain: Some people believe that the Congress leadership wants you to play a role outside Punjab now.

Amarinder Singh: I have conveyed to my party that I am not interested in any place other than Punjab. I can contribute positively to my party in Punjab. There is no point posting me to a far-off place like Nagaland, where I don’t know any Naga and neither does a Naga know me. I am not interested in Lok Sabha elections either. Already, my wife is an MP and you can’t have the entire family in it.

•Manraj Grewal: But your party seems to thrive on dynasties. Look at the current obsession with Rahul Gandhi.

Amarinder Singh: People who come from well-known families have an initial advantage, but then it is up to the electorate to accept them or reject them. In the case of Rajiv Gandhi, I remember when Sanjay died, he was very reluctant to enter politics. But he did and people gave him their mandate with a thumping majority. The same can be said of Rahul Gandhi. People like him and that is why he won from Amethi.

•Dinker Vashisht: Do you think that Pratap Singh Kairon’s prophecy has come true that once Punjab was trifurcated into Punjab, Haryana and Himachal, the state would never enjoy the same prominence on the national scene?

Amarinder Singh: It is true to a large extent. Sardar Pratap Singh Kairon had a lot of foresight. When Punjab was developed after 1947, its entire industrial area was around Faridabad. The area was selected due to its proximity to the national capital region and nearness to railheads. Once the state was divided, that industrial area went to Haryana. Punjab suffers from an image problem: because we like to live a good life, everyone assumes that everything must be great. But when 74 per cent of our farmers own less than four acres of land in the state, there’s not much farming for them. That is why you hear about farmers’ suicides.

•Jaskiran Kaur: Punjab seems to be lagging behind on lots of fronts. What is your biggest concern?

Amarinder Singh: Improvements have to be made in primary education. Recently, the region has seen the opening of several research and technology centres. This move would be futile in the absence of talented people who can attend them. As chief minister I realised the importance of primary education. But we had a paucity of funds. So, I roped in the corporate sector. For instance, we brought in the Bharti group and asked them to take over 60 schools and run them. We were to provide the teachers. But the Akalis unnecessarily provoked our teachers to launch an agitation.

... contd.