Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh will personally monitor the new Guardians of Governance (GoG) department his party proposes to set up on coming to power in the state, thereby ensuring stringent implementation of all welfare schemes at the grassroots.The proposed department will reach out to distinguished ex-servicemen to work on the ground in the state, where they will ensure proper implementation of all government schemes and programmes, Captain Amarinder said in a statement issued here on Monday.While providing gainful employment to ex-servicemen, the GoG scheme will ensure that the government relief actually reaches the needy and is not lost in the process of dissemination as a result of corruption and favouritism.Captain Amarinder, himself an ex-serviceman, disclosed that a separate department under his supervision will function from the office of the chief minister, with key ex-servicemen trained and deputed to handle its operations.
Explaining the proposed GoG system, Captain Amarinder said one ex-servicemen each will be appointed in each of the 12700 villages of Punjab. Guardians of Governance will also work at Tehsil and District levels, including cities, and the Chief Minister’s office.With most of them retiring at an early age, it is important to employ the ex-servicemen gainfully and restore their sense of pride, said Captain Amarinder, adding that the GoG department would be a small step in this direction.The GoGs, said the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president, would play an important role in bringing progress back on track in the state, which had been crippled as a result of the misgovernance of the Badal regime over the past 10 years, .The GoG department, said Captain Amarinder, will fulfill the twin purpose of utilizing the services of ex-servicemen and creating a unique platform to sustain public welfare programmes on the ground. It will ensure that every single paisa of the money allocated for people’s welfare schemes percolates down to them and is utilized for the intended purpose and does not end up in the pockets of middlemen, the Punjab Congress president added.With a Guardian of Governance in every village, the chief minister will have his finger on the pulse of Punjab.