Today in Lucknow: Two padyatras, cleanliness pledge & a novel contest

Dist admn to hold competition wherein all those who collect and deposit 1 kg of banned ‘single use’ plastic would be eligible for cash prizes after lucky draw

LUCKNOW: While the state capital will witness two high profile but contrasting padyatras, chief minister Yogi Adityanath will undertake a cleanliness campaign at city’s 1090 crossing to kick off a fortnight long multipurpose party activity from Wednesday, Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary.

The Lucknow district administration will also launch a novel contest as part of which all those who collect and deposit a kilogram of banned ‘single use’ plastic at 1090 crossing would be eligible for cash prizes after a lucky draw, confirmed Mukesh Meshram, commissioner of Lucknow

After Adityanath flags off a rally to make people become conscious of their duties for environment and distributes cloth bags to signal his government’s commitment to ban single use plastic, the state BJP headquarters in Lucknow would be declared ‘free of single use plastic’.

“As a political party this is part of our effort to play a role in mobilising support for social cause,” said UP BJP general secretary (organisation) Sunil Bansal.

In fact on Gandhi Jayanti eve,

several ministers of Yogi Adityanath government were caught getting photographed cleaning the city. For instance, labour minister Swami Prasad Maurya was photographed cleaning roads of plastic waste. All ministers and BJP functionaries are also to undertake ward-level cleanliness campaign even as other BJP lawmakers lead padyatras in their own constituencies across the state.

But the focus would be on Lucknow where Yogi’s early morning cleanliness act, - which would also include a cleanliness

pledge being administered would set the stage for the contrasting padyatras, one featuring union defence minister Rajnath Singh who is also the Lucknow MP, the other with Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi ‘Vadra’ in the lead.

Both would start from different points -- the Congress leader scheduled to conclude hers at the Gandhi statue in Hazratganj, the spot from where Rajnath would begin his.

Both would be high on symbolism – the Congress leader scheduled to start from the martyr’s memorial or the Shaheed Smarak before concluding at the Gandhi crossing while the BJP veteran has chosen the Rajput warrior.

The Congress padyatra, would be to protest what the Congress claimed the government highhandedness in banning its proposed padyatra from Shahjahanpur to Lucknow to demand justice for the Shahjahanpur woman whose complaint got three-time BJP MP and former union minister of state for home Chinmayanand arrested on rape charge. The woman too was subsequently arrested for allegedly attempting to blackmail the former minister.

Rajnath’s padyatra is part of the BJP plan to raise awareness on Article 370, against single plastic use, to highlight the importance of cleanliness and water conservation.

For 15 days from October 2, all BJP lawmakers, ministers and others would be required to complete 150 kilometers padyatra in their constituencies, an effort which the party leaders assess would help them connect with masses. “In by-poll areas this would further help us in mass connect,” a BJP leader said.