At the time of going to the Press, Himani Jain of Aam Aadmi Party got elected in a close contest. Congratulations on her Victory.The ever so demanding posh Vasant Vihar resident has achieved the Not-So-Complementary Distinction of being 3rd from the bottom in Voter Turnout of around 35%. Municipal Elections impact the residents DIRECTLY, as delivery of civic amenities like sanitation, roads, storm water drains, parks, community centre / club, play grounds, encroachments, parking, stray dogs, encroachment of public spaces, eenforcement of building Bye Laws etc. come directly under MCD. Yet the electoral heat somehow does not transfer into vote percentage in Posh Colonies….. It stays restricted to drawing room debates and cribbing thereafter.
This begs a question, Why should Politicians deploy LAD Funds in posh areas and not cater to their vote banks? The resultant effect of low voter turnout is, while Posh Colony residents are given Royal Lip Service and an occasional LAD Fund Project, the real issues affecting the residents stay ignored.
During the election campaign all the party candidates politely listened to demands of the people. People questioned them on their vision for overall development and upgradation of services; how proactive will they be in taking up social issues that impact residents; how forcefully will they place the voice of people in the corridors of power; will they consult area residents before taking up development projects etc.
In a nutshell the important issues that must be addressed to maintain the Posh Tag of Vasant Vihar are.. Clear footpaths of all Eencroachments; make pavements pedestrian friendly; Regular Cleaning of Back Lanes; Play Ground for Children, Policy for Parking, management of Colony Gates & Community Functions in Parks; Stop Mushrooming of Guest Houses, Shops & Offices to retain residential character of Vasant Vihar; enforcement of building bye laws and conversion of Stilts for commercial purpose; Market Corridors should be free of encroachments; End Stray Dog/Monkey Menace etc.
This is not impossible as Lutyens Delhi; with similar Voter Apathy has world class services….. Meaning someone is doing something right in pushing the staff to work and do not need examples of Singapore or Paris to understand City Management. On the flip side, it may be a case of Chicken & Egg, what came first, Political Parties catering to Vote Banks leading to Voter Apathy. It is upon us to change that, by not voting we turn our Majority into Minority. Moreover we pay huge amount in taxes and deserve better.
