EARTH NEWS SERVICE Jammu, Dec 07|15:Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed is reported to have pulled up the officials of Tourism Department for a goof up which ended into a public embarrassment during inauguration of Tawi Upfront Park on Sunday. it was piquant situation resulting out of negligence or internal competition of the Tourism department with the Irrigation and Flood Control department that the Chief Minister had to find himself in an uncomfortable position. River Tawi Front Park has been set up on 25 kanals of reclaimed land transferred by I&FC Department to Tourism Department and constructed at a cost of Rs. 5.50 crore, which includes Rs.1 crore additionality for damage sustained in 2014 floods.
The basic ground work has been done by the Irrigation and Flood Control department while as landscaping and beautification has been done by the Tourism Department. Courtesy demanded that the park should have been introduced to the people as a joint venture of the both departments. The tourism department not failed in giving due credit to Irrigation and Flood Control department it also forgot to extend basic courtesy to the Minister Sukhanandan Kumar Chowdhary. When Sukhnandan came across the fact that the park is being thrown open by the Chief Minister together with the Deputy Chief Minister, he minced no words in putting his resentment on record. The Chief Minister though placated Sukhnandan on the occasion but he has made no secrets of his unhappiness with the Tourism department officials. Pertinently, the Chief Minister himself is the Minister for Tourism. The Irrigation and Flood Control Minister Sukhnandan Kumar was kind enough to acknowledge Chief Minister’s intervention but an impression has gone out that the bureaucracy could always play a spoilsport in the relations between two coalition partners. Sukhnandan hailed the Chief Minister for his inclusive approach of taking the cabinet colleagues along. A day after the inaugural ceremony, the top officers of the Irrigation and Flood Control Department are reported to have sifted through the files to make it known that the initial development work was initiated by their department and not the Tourism department. As the offices resumed Monday morning Chief Minister’s displeasure has been conveyed to the Tourism department for this goof up.
