Ground was purely personal, but has not been accepted: Punjab governor on resignation

Chandigarh: Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Banwarilal Purohit on Thursday said the ground for his resignation last month was purely personal, and added that he was, however, told to stay and continue his work.

In an interaction with mediapersons here, Purohit also talked about various initiatives taken during his tenure so far as the Union Territory (UT) Chandigarh Administrator.

Asked about the real reason behind his resignation, he said, 'I have sent it (resignation), but they are not leaving (me) and telling me (to) stay and work.'

'They said 'nahi karenge' (won't accept resignation),' he said.

He said the ground he gave for his resignation was purely his family, personal reasons and nothing else.

'My wife came here from Nagpur but went back after 10 days. My family, they are missing me there... I am also international vice president of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and I started the Nagpur centre in 1984,' he said.

Purohit had last month submitted his resignation to President Droupadi Murmu, citing personal reasons.

'Due to my personal reasons and certain other commitments, I tender my resignation from the post of governor of Punjab and administrator, Union Territory, Chandigarh. Please accept the same and oblige,' Purohit wrote in his resignation letter.

Purohit was appointed as Punjab governor and Chandigarh administrator in August 2021.

Earlier, he had also served as the governor of Assam from 2016 to 2017 and the governor of Tamil Nadu from 2017 to 2021.

Purohit had also been a three-time Lok Sabha member from Nagpur in 1984, 1989 and 1996.

Asked about his address to the Punjab Assembly on the opening day of its budget session on March 1, when it was disrupted by the opposition Congress legislators who raised the issues of the protesting farmers, the governor said, 'I am of the view that time of the House should be properly utilised. I had told them (Congress members) that they listen to my address first and then they may speak and have a healthy debate (on Governor's Address).'

Meanwhile, referring to his tenure as Chandigarh administrator so far, Purohit said, 'We have done lot of work in past two-and-a-half years.'

He said that he has utilised his vast public life experience for public good. He also mentioned that he has in the past also remained a three-term MP, governor of Assam, holding additional charge as Meghalaya governor for 18 months, governor of Tamil Nadu for four years before he was made Punjab governor.

'But I can say the team of Chandigarh UT officers with whom I am working is one of the best teams. I have public life experience of five decades and in UT Chandigarh, I got the best team,' he said.

He said Chandigarh has made rapid strides in many fields during past few years.

'In the Swachh Sarvekshan, Chandigarh now ranks 11th from 66th rank once. I promise that in coming two years, we will be among first five, we will achieve that target,' he said.

'We are best urban local body in water management in the country. We are amongst the best in smart cities and best project in mobility.

'Chandigarh is the best UT in energy efficiency index. These are just a few achievements,' he said, and added that in e-governance initiatives too, Chandigarh is ahead.

Chandigarh has got the first rank in the country in school education. It is also the best UT in crime and criminal network tracking systems, he said.

Chandigarh is second among all states in inter-operable criminal justice system, he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision is that UTs should be the role model of development and good governance, and we are fully working in this direction, he said.

He said green cover of Chandigarh is increasing. From 41 per cent in 2017, it has increased to 50 per cent, he added.

The governor said 80 electric buses have already been introduced in public transport and 100 more will be introduced within a couple of months.

Several incentives were offered under the electric vehicle (EV) policy notified in September 2022. Chandigarh is likely to become a model solar city before 2030, he said.

Lots of funds have been pumped in on school, college and urban infrastructure for housing, sports, road network and cycle tracks, he said.