It’s your right to keep public representatives active

Out of the ten MLAs who have been made ministers in the new AAP government of Punjab, eight are totally fresh. They got elected for the first time as MLA and also became a minister for the first time. Punjab is neck-deep in debt, yet it has been giving royal treatment to its MLAs. The state government pays their income tax and also gives life-time hefty pensions to former MLAs. That too when Punjab has been under a debt of Rs 2.6 lakh crore. According to the CAG report, the debt on the state is increasing day by day and it is expected to increase to Rs 3.73 lakh crore by 2024-25. The previous government of the state used to pay income tax of 93 MLAs including Navjot Singh Sidhu, while 24 MLAs including Captain Amarinder Singh used to pay their own tax. In Punjab, a former MLA gets a pension of Rs 15,000 for life. Moreover, on winning the elections again, every time 10 thousand rupees are added to the basic pension. Former chief minister of Punjab, Parkash Singh Badal was an MLA for five times, that is, his pension must be around Rs 6 lakh annually. This is another matter, that recently he has expressed his desire not to take pension.
 
Unlike Punjab, MLAs in Haryana pay their own income tax. In Himachal Pradesh, a former MLA gets Rs 82 thousand as pension and on becoming an MLA again, Rs 2,000 gets added every time. From a village Sarpanch to MLAs, and to MPs, the government pays a huge amount as salary, allowances and many free facilities to all these public representatives; that is, the money collected from the public in the form of tax, goes to the politicians. That is why people should not let the leaders sit idle after voting. Rather, keep pressure on the leaders of your area to solve the regional problems. The MLAs and MPs are public representatives and it is their responsibility to work tirelessly for their constituency and solve the problems of the people. Therefore, keep in touch with your public representatives by writing letters, through social media or meeting in person, and do not leave them until they raise regional issues in appropriate forums like the State Assemblies or Parliament. If your regional leader does not join you in your joys and sorrow, then what is the meaning of being a public representative? They should be made accountable.
 
Startups are placing high hopes from the new government. IT entrepreneurs feel that startups have the potential to accelerate the overall development of Punjab. However, there are some hurdles that need to be removed. The key issues that need to be addressed are: make the international airport fully functional and introduce direct flights to London, Toronto, San Francisco, Singapore and New York to improve connectivity between the world's top startup hubs, make power and internet rates affordable, creating a portal where the IT companies of the state can be registered, making a section on the government portal where tech companies can show their vacancies, and providing infrastructure support to start ups for at least three years.

(Author is a senior journalist and columnist)