First it was the son rising. And now the daughter-in-law too. The Badal star is certainly in ascent in Punjab. Within a few months of Sukhbir Badal taking over as the deputy chief minister of the state, the bahu of the family, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, is now a political star in her own right, as the Member of Parliament from the Bathinda Lok Sabha Constituency.
Getting here was an interesting fight. Harsimrat was pitted against Raninder Singh, son of former chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh. For the two top political clans in Punjab, it was a question of prestige, and the Badal clan has taken the pie. Harsimrat defeated Raninder by 1,20,948 votes ?something that Sukhbir can definitely pat his back for. And while she has the backing of the powerful family, Harsimrat will have to deliver too. The major issues in Bathinda constituency are the inadequacy of potable water, pollution caused by the thermal power plant, an alarming rate of cancer deaths in the Malwa region, and need for infrastructural development.
Harsimrat, a diploma holder in textile engineering from Delhi, is on a spree of thanksgiving meetings these days, and is interacting with more and more people of her constituency. ?One of my first priorities is to ensure the availability of potable drinking water in my constituency. I am also focussing on the problem of pollution. In this regard, we have planted 5.30 lakh saplings as part of the Nanhi Chhaan campaign. Our target is to plant 12 lakh saplings in the state.?
In order to ensure the economic development of the area, Harsimrat says she will try to avail grants from various Central government schemes. ?I want to focus on the all-round development of the area. Our objective is to upgrade the educational system and open good hospitals. We also want to create the right infrastructure to attract investment,? she says.
Another project that the campaign, ?Nanhi Chhaan? is associated with is curbing female foeticide. The activists have been trying to create awareness against this menace. ?I have suggested to the chief minister to provide Rs 15,000 as fixed deposit in the name of poor parents of newborn girls. The scheme is likely to be implemented soon,? she says.
When questioned about how she will handle the expectations of the voters, Harsimrat asserts that she is prepared to work hard and deliver the results. ?Giving my best effort to the work in hand is a value I learnt from parents. This was the reason that despite hailing from a political family in Punjab, I opted for vocational training. I also worked for some time, and drew a salary of Rs 1,250 a month. I am looking forward to meeting the expectations of the voters in full measure,? says the Badal Bahu.