Achievements & Disappointments of 2 years as MP

by Sanjeev Arora
Including me most were surprised when I was elected for the upper house in the Indian Parliament, Rajya Sabha. Nobody had ever imagined that I would enter into politics one day. I was nominated unopposed because no opposition candidate was fielded. My term in the Rajya Sabha as a member from Punjab started on April 10, 2022. Now, after two years of my working as an MP (Rajya Sabha) I have tried my best to prove my skills as a capable candidate for the coveted post. I strongly believe that contrary to some existing perceptions of people I have tried to work more than some of the elected MPs. I go by principles of an all-time great Parliamentarian of UK Bernadette Devlin whose famous quote is “My function in life is not to be a politician in Parliament, it is to get something done.”

I have dedicated and devoted my time, and resources for the betterment of the people of Punjab and in particular Ludhiana. Some of my issues also affect our Nation as a whole by highlighting public interest issues in and outside the Rajya Sabha. My concrete and sincere efforts which are crystal-clear reflect from the available data of my working in the last two years. I would not hesitate to say here that my overall performance in parliament is a glaring example to many others. People from different walks of life ask me how I manage things despite my family & business commitments. 

In total, I am satisfied with my work so far. But, at the same time have met with disappointments also. I strongly believe that parliamentary affairs should always go in an uninterrupted manner to get maximum outcome. There came occasions when I entered parliament with many hopes and aspirations, but all these hopes and aspirations came down after sessions of the Rajya Sabha were adjourned due to one or another reason on regular basis. As a result, many public interest issues could not be taken up by me and I returned empty handed. Despite all this, I have a positive and constructure approach. I would like to say here that I am always committed to working for the cause of the people of Ludhiana and other parts of the state and the Nation as well. People are the real source of inspiration for me. People’s feedback made me rich to stand and ask questions for them in the parliament and also take up matters with the Ministers and senior bureaucrats. It is true that I am not a politician, but I shall continue to work as a real and true representative of people at every platform. It is my humble request to all Party leaders in parliament to make sure that the proceedings of Parliament run smoothly. We need to set an example for all generations and also have a respectable picture in the eyes of World. 

During the last two years working as an MP, I have been able to fetch significant information in the shape of replies from various Union Ministries. The replies I got from the Ministries were highly informative to the masses. Not only this, the replies of the Ministries also proved beneficial for Punjab and the country as well. Interestingly, I am not in the habit of keeping these replies into my office files only. Rather, I highlighted these issues at every platform at a larger level and did follow-ups with the Ministries concerned with bringing development in Ludhiana and other parts of the State. Besides national and state issues, I also regularly took local issues of Ludhiana, including NHAI’s elevated road project, upgradation of ESI Hospital, increasing bedding capacity of ESI Hospital from 300 to 500, construction of four bridges on the Sidhwan Canal, highways’ projects in the state, making flight operational to Sahnewal Airport, following up on setting up of Halwara Airport which was hanging for more than 10 years , setting up of 21 Kms cycle tracks in the city by NHAI, beautification of roads along the elevated road, upgradation of Ludhiana and Dhandari railway stations. I also raised many burning issues of the industry. It is a matter of pride for me that the work of focal point roads got started due to my persistent follow up. This work was lying undone over the decades. I also took an initiative for renovation of Civil Hospital, Ludhiana besides a few others in the state. I try to regularly monitor the projects I take care of. At the same time, I regularly visit the sites such as Halwara Airport, Sahnewal Airport, Civil Hospitals, ESI Hospital, elevated roads, and others for early completion of the projects. Duly understanding my commitments and responsibilities towards the masses, I always keep interest in each and every aspect of the projects. The officials concerned are now fully aware of my working style and nature therefore whenever they come for a meeting with me, they are fully updated and well prepared. I have observed this very minutely during my meetings with the officers on many occasions.

I am also satisfied with the ideas discussed and some of them implemented by Govt in Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health & Family Welfare of which I am member. I try to remain as active as possible and appreciate our Chairman Sh Bhubaneswar Kalita for being supportive. I have got 35 poor patients an amount of Rs. 105 Lacs from PMNRF and have distributed almost whole of MPLAD funds received on health & education sectors.

It is really a matter of satisfaction for me that people are more or less appreciative of my work. I worked tremendously for development and creating infrastructure of Punjab and in particular Ludhiana. I knew that a city, a state, or a nation can develop in the true sense if it has good infrastructure. Meeting anyone for the cause of city, state or nation is not an issue for me. People fully understand that I have been working above the party lines. This is why I have easy access to the State and the Union Ministries. I take up the public interest issues with the Ministers and other Senior Bureaucrats considering as if these issues are my personal issues. This level of working of mine has led to early completion of many projects while many other projects are heading towards seeing day of the light. 

All what I have achieved and trying to do would not have been possible without the support of our Hon’ble Chief Minister Sardar Bhagwant Singh Mann, National Convener Shri Arvind Kejriwal, my colleagues in Parliament and my Family & Friends are great pillars of support for me.