In the 11 years since Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty wooed audiences from UP and Bihar in the hit number Dilwalon ke dil ka karaar lootne,main aayi hun UP,Bihar lootne,this citys demographics have seen a sea change. Today,a rerun of Shettys gyrations would set the box office ringing in Bathinda as much as in any cowbelt town. A full fledged township of workers from UP and Bihar has developed right in front of the Rs 18,919-crore HMEL Guru Gobind Singh Refinery at Phulokhari village in Bathinda. The culture and lifestyle of the said states resonates strongly through the settlement. More than 25,000 labourers - many of whom are from UP and Bihar - are working for different companies inside the refinery complex that is scheduled to be completed by March 2011. Perhaps,that explains the language shift in a particular stretch opposite the Refinery. The people of these two states have ensured that they import their indigenous commercial activity - right from grocery shops to barbers,garment and meat shops, all run by natives of the home states. There are,of course,a few odd shops run by a Punjabis,who make it a point to stress on their specialty in a foreign area,be it the mashhoor Punjabi lassi or rasmalai. On every Sunday,the UP and Bihar cultures reverberate in front of Refinery gate with people jostling with each other to buy articles from the special stalls put up in an open space. Its no surprise then that the sale of liquor from a vend of country liquor exceeds Rs 70,000 a day on Sunday - a figure that is believed to put even the best of country liquor vends in Bathinda to shame. There is an average daily sale of Rs 35,000-worth of country liquor. On Sundays,it doubles, said Gurmeet Singh,an employee who handles sales at the only vend around. However,a visit to the area also revealed the darker side - of living in very unhygienic conditions. The exposed eatables and poor drainage around a number of dwelling units often lands labourers in hospitals for treatment.
