‘Amader Para Amader Samadhan’: About 1.75L people visit 632 camps
Kolkata: The Bengal government’s unique grassroots governance drive, ‘Amader Para Amader Samadhan’ (APAS), began across the state on Saturday, drawing an impressive turnout of over 1.75 lakh people at 632 camps. The initiative, aimed at empowering local communities, saw residents actively participating in discussions to identify priorities and decide how to utilise the Rs 10 lakh allocated to each of Bengal’s 80,000-plus booths. From remote hamlets to urban neighbourhoods, the camps turned into vibrant forums of collective decision-making, with citizens voicing concerns, proposing solutions, and engaging directly in shaping their local development agenda.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, taking to her X handle, posted: “Amader Para Amader Samadhan (APAS) is a unique flagship initiative aimed at institutionalising participatory governance and re-imagining grassroots service delivery through people-engagement and empowerment. APAS camp is a platform where local people shall deliberate, identify and prioritise their local level infrastructure needs. I invite the people to visit their camps and participate in the discussions to make APAS a grand success.” About 27,000 camps will be organised all over the state, with Rs 10 lakh granted for each camp. Each camp is also housing Duare Sarkar service desks to address personal grievances, making it a holistic platform for public participation and service delivery. From Howrah, participant Bumba Chakraborty said: “I saw the authorities take my complaint seriously and assure action. I’ve never seen a scheme like this anywhere in India.”
At a Duare Sarkar desk in an APAS camp, a woman beneficiary said: “Duare Sarkar helped me when my brother-in-law was sick. We used the Swasthya Sathi card for his treatment. This is real help reaching real people.” Kolkata witnessed four camps in wards 70, 13, 10 and 48, for APAS. In Ward No. 70, Bhowanipore, Mayor Firhad Hakim, along with local councillor Ashim Basu, interacted with residents, listened to their concerns, and worked on providing prompt solutions to the issues raised. Residents raised issues ranging from Aadhaar linking and widow pensions to one-way road requests and hawker encroachment on Sarat Bose Road. Ashok Bhagat, a resident of Bishop Lefroy Road, complained against a restaurant that has its central kitchen located on the same road not adhering to safety norms while cooking. Ashok Bhagat, a resident of Bishop Lefroy Road, complained about a restaurant’s central kitchen violating safety norms. Councillor Basu assured action. He also mentioned that a drainage pumping station is being built at Northern Park annex, which will also house a children’s park.
