As a measure of austerity, keeping in view the financial constraints facing the state, Chief Minister-designate Captain Amarinder Singh has decided to go in for a simple and low-key swearing-in ceremony.There will be nothing ostentatious about the oath-taking programme at the Raj Bhavan on Thursday morning, when Punjab Governor V.P Singh Badmore will administer the oath of office to Captain Amarinder Singh as the new chief minister of the state. CLP leader and Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Captain Amarinder will be sworn in, along with a few members of his cabinet, to pave the way for the installation of the new government.Captain Amarinder has made it clear that in the light of the state’s fiscal situation he did not want any unnecessary or wasteful expenditure to be incurred on the swearing-in ceremony. His government, said Captain Amarinder, was committed to getting the state out of the financial doldrums into which it had been plunged by the previous dispensation. Each small step will count towards ensuring that every possible rupee is saved at this critical juncture, he added.
The Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president requested all the newly elected MLAs to also keep their personal invitations to the bare minimum to keep the ceremony simple. He further urged them to ensure that their supporters also show similar restraint, and not clog the roads of Chandigarh and cause hardship to the people of the city. While thanking the party workers and the people of Punjab for giving the Congress such a clear and sweeping mandate in the assembly polls, the CM-designate said he would be visiting all the districts to personally express his gratitude once the immediate Constitutional requirements of government formation are completed.Captain Amarinder appealed to the people to support his government’s efforts in bringing Punjab’s growth and developed back on track. Pointing to the thousands of crores of rupees of debt under which the state is currently reeling, he underlined the need for collective and out-of-the-box initiatives by all government departments, backed by public support, to address the crisis.Captain Amarinder expressed the confidence that his government would successfully overcome the situation to revive the economic growth and restore the state to its original pristine glory.