PM Modi’s visit to Bihar: A challenge for administration, a problem for residents

A prime ministerial visit is always a challenge to the administration. And if it is of Narendra Modi, the challenge becomes even greater. It is not because he needs some extra security than his predecessors or other VVIPs but because he tours much more frequently than anyone else. Each time he visits a place the whole administrative machinery had to work round-the-clock for days to make arrangements.

For example, on October 14 he would be visiting Bihar for the third time this year. No prime minister since independence––even Indira Gandhi, who ruled for 17 years––had visited Bihar (or for that matter any other state) so many times in just three and a half years. In 2015 alone he addressed more than 30 public meetings in the run-up to the October-November Assembly election. He attended several government functions in Bihar in the month of July and August, that is, before, the announcement of election dates.

In the Assembly election in Uttar Pradesh earlier this year he excelled his own performance further. He even led road-shows in Banaras, his own constituency.

He is doing the same in Gujarat, where he is almost camping. since no new projects can be undertaken or inaugurated after the announcements of the dates by Election Commission, he is doing all this just before it.

Take the example of his upcoming trip to Bihar. He would attend the centenary celebration of Patna University in Patna Science College, situated in the heavily populated area of Ashok Rajpath in the city and will also visit Mokama, about 90 km from the state capital––but in the same Patna district.

Unlike the January 5 trip on the occasion of 350th birth anniversary of Guru Govind Singh (Prakash Utsav), in which he addressed the gathering in Gandhi Maidan, making arrangement this time is no easy task for the administration. The entire 10-km long route from Patna airport to Science College has been sanitised and footpath vendors removed ahead of October 14 visit. The footpath and rain-baseras (night shelters) have been barricaded.

According to the schedule, the special aircraft will land at Patna airport. The Prime Minister is expected to take the road route, but an alternative arrangement for chopper landing has been made with helipads at NIT and Patna College grounds. Both are situated near Science College.

Incidentally, the prime minister is visiting just a couple of days before Dhanteras, during which roadside-hawkers do some good business.

No doubt, some cosmetic changes have been made by authorities of the fund-starved Patna University and pot-holes on the roads have been filled, but the jamboree is affecting students’ studies. In fact it is always the last priority.

This is not the first time that Modi’s frequent trips have its impact on the state. In Bharuch district in Gujarat early this month, standing cotton crop was destroyed for building helipad for PM’s visit despite protest from the students of agriculture college , farmers of Vaishali district of Bihar had also strongly resisted the premature cutting of wheat crop for PM’s programme on March 12, 2016.

On the eve of the 2015 Assembly election 400-500 trees (many of them fruit-bearing) and many more saplings were chopped off to make arrangements for PM Modi’s rally in BN Mandal University premises in Madhepura district. The local people and environment activist Ranjeev had strongly protested against it.