DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Haryana minister Anil Vij Sunday said providing basic amenities was a top priority of the government as he inaugurated a dharamshala in Ambala Cantt on Sunday.

Highlighting that the Haryana government has extended bus services in Chandpuri, Boh and Babyal, Vij said at an event that soon bus queue shelters will be set up at many locations in the town.

The shelters will also be equipped with fans, so people won't have to wait in the heat for buses, the transport, energy and labour minister said.

Vij made the remarks while inaugurating a newly constructed dharamshala in Ward No 22, Chandpuri, built at Rs 25 lakh. He said dharamshalas perform an important role in serving as venues for community gatherings during weddings and other social occasions. "I want my city's people to have all essential amenities, and I have spent my entire life working towards that," said Vij, the Ambala Cantt MLA.

In addition to Chandpuri, dharamshalas have also been built in Shahpur, Machhonda and Shivalaya, ensuring that citizens can comfortably host both family and social events. All these dharamshalas are fully equipped with modern facilities, the minister said.

Addressing a gathering at a separate event that followed the play "Putla" was performed at the Open Air Theatre in Subhash Park, Ambala, Vij rued the declining trend of physical meetings in today's life, saying it is weakening social bonds.

He said nowadays many people are unable to take out time and sit together and share the joys and sorrows of life. "We must step outside our homes and eliminate these social distances," the minister said.

He recalled how, in the past, theatre used to be a primary medium to communicate ideas to the masses and reflect on social issues.

"But with the advent of television, things changed. We have become confined. Earlier, we played outside, sat at the village chaupals and shared conversations. Now, it's all gone. You see very few kites flying or children playing games like gulli-danda.

"Today, people come home in the evening and sink into their screens. Social bonds are weakening," he said. Vij, who frequents a tea spot in the town, was earlier in the day seen singing 'Kuch toh log kahenge', the RD Burman-Kishore Kumar classic from Amar Prem (1972). Those gathered cheered him on as he sang the popular lines penned by Anand Bakshi.

The minister is often seen at his favourite tea stall obliging people at the stall with a song.

(editor@dailyworld.in)