UP Village Sets Example For Others

Shahjahanpur (UP): With clean lanes, lush green surroundings, CCTV cameras and open areas for the elderly, the Bhatpura village in west Uttar Pradesh has set examples for other villages across the state to follow.

With a population of 5,000, the village, which is compared to a modern city, falls under the Sidhauli block of Shahjahanpur district.

Village head Anil Kumar Gupta told PTI that four sweepers work round the clock to ensure that its streets remain neat and clean.

Locals, too, extend their support, he said.

“It has become a custom of our village that if an outsider eats something and throws away its wrapper or fruit peels on the street, the first person to pass by, will pick it up and put it in the nearest dustbin kept at different places in the village,” Mr Gupta explained.

“I have tried to develop my village as a modern city,” he said, adding that he inspired the locals to plant four lakh trees of poplar and around 5,000 others bearing fruits or having medicinal value around the village.

Apart from this, Mr Gupta said, 26 ponds have also been made inside and on the outskirts of Bhatpura for water to collect.

With an aim to conserve the ecological balance, the village also has hundreds of artificial bird nests. The nests installed across the village provide shelter to birds which can be seen fluttering and chirping around the village, he chirped.

Mr Gupta claimed that there are 20 CCTV cameras installed at every intersection in his village and adds that since then, the number of criminal incidents has declined significantly.

“Because of the cameras, quarrelling, theft, dacoity, murder have not taken place in this village since a long time. The criminal incidents are almost negligible,” the village head said.

Chief Development Officer (CDO) Shyam Bahadur Singh told PTI that he has inspected Bhatpura village, and for the work done by the village head, the village panchayat has been awarded Rs 11 Lakh by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow.

Several development works have been done in this village. Besides having selfie points, the village has two government and private schools and a cow shelter, he said.

According to the officer, the children in the village are encouraged to attend school and a village committee regularly monitors the quality of Mid-day meals served in the government schools.

A common area named ‘Jamuna Vatika’ for the elderly is the highlight of the area.

“The elders can sit there comfortably amidst greenery. It was developed as a pilot project and will also be developed in other villages of the district,” Mr Singh said.

The village which has over 70 per cent Muslim households has also become a symbol of Hindu- Muslim unity and harmony.

Superintendent of Police S. Anand said there is a committee in Bhatpura village under Sidhauli police station, which resolves minor disputes.

“The crime is negligible in the village and the residents also abstain from alcohol,” he added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)