Aman Sood
The first town in Punjab when one enters from Haryana from the Amritsar-Delhi national highway has seen many new projects and roads in the inner constituency of Ghanaur. The constituency has seen many investments in the past one decade.
However, it has gained much notoriety for illegal mining, which is rampant in the whole Ghaggar belt and farmlands near it.
Ghanaur, being a rural segment, shares its border with Haryana and the constituency residents will be the first in the state to get canal-based water supply, for which work is almost in its final stages.
“After years of flooding and losses in every monsoon due to the overflowing Ghaggar and the diseases its polluted water brings with it, we will finally get treated canal-based water supply for our villages,” says Bapror resident Devinder Singh. “Due to water pollution and skin diseases near villages along the river, the cost of our land has not risen,” he said, adding that a permanent solution to Ghaggar was the need of the hour.
Sitting Congress MLA Madan Lal Jalalpur has nurtured the constituency for almost 15 years. The SAD has fielded its former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra, ignoring former MLA Harpreet Kaur Mukhmailpur, whose family enjoys a significant public support. AAP is fielding kabaddi player Gurlal Singh Ghanaur.
Jalalpur says he has been instrumental in getting many works done like setting up of a water treatment plant for drinking water, an industrial corridor project for six villages, new Shambhu block, road widening, upkeep of Civil Hospital, renovations of Anaj Mandi, a sewage treatment plant, renovation of bus stand, etc.
Locals’ key demands
- Putting an end to mining
- Checking water pollution
- Improving health infra
- Checking inundation in monsoon
Past trend
In 2002, Congress candidate Jasjit Singh Randhawa was the winner; while in 2007, Jalalpur won as an Independent. In 2012, Harpreet Mukhmailpur won the seat, defeating Jalalpur. But the latter won on Congress ticket in 2017.
Electorate strength
Total voters: 1,60,202
Male: 86123
Female: 74,079
Third gender: 2
Ghanaur: Ghaggar remains bane of villagers
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