All licence holders need not deposit firearms before elections

Vikas Garg joined as the Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner in January-end following the transfer of Sumer Singh Gurjar,whose tenure was marred by controversies.

Vikas Garg joined as the Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner in January-end following the transfer of Sumer Singh Gurjar,whose tenure was marred by controversies. A 1998-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer,he has earlier served as DC at Patiala and Muktsar. In an interview with SHARAT K VERMA,he shares his plans for the city.

Please tell us something about your career graph?
I hail from Abohar. After clearing IAS,I was appointed the Assistant Commissioner (under training) in 1999. In 2000-01,I served as the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) at Dharkala and Malout. In 2002,I was given the charge of Assistant Deputy Commissioner (ADC) at Ropar and following year,I was appointed as the Nawanshahar ADC. Till 2007,I was earlier given the charge of Additional Chief Administrator (ACA) PUDA at Jalandhar and then as ACA PUDA at Mohali Headquarters. In 2007,I was appointed as Muktsar DC which was my first assignment as the DC and from 2008 till January 2009,I was Patiala DC before being shifted here.

In your over two months stay at Ludhiana,how do you find the city?
I find it as the most vibrant city of all the places where I have worked so far. People here are very enterprising,zealous and hardworking. The city has developed a lot and is further developing.

As you said the city has developed and is further developing. Do you think there is a need to urgently regulate this haphazard development to make it a planned one?
Of course,I have some plans in this regard but due to the enforcement of the model code of conduct,I cant disclose my plans. Once the elections are over,I would be able to share and execute my plans in a better way.

As of now,what is your top priority?
As is obvious,my top priority these days is to ensure free and fair Lok Sabha elections. Adequate arrangements have been made to conduct the forthcoming elections in a democratic way. The representatives of all parties have been requested to extend their full cooperation to implement the code during the campaign for the coming Lok Sabha elections and strictly abide the directions of the Election Commission. To implement the model of code of conduct in the district,a committee has been constituted under the chairmanship of an ADC. Besides elections,the administration is also busy in the wheat procurement. As many as 87 mandis have been set up in the district to procure wheat. The procurement is going smoothly and farmers are being paid for their produce within 48 hours of the arrival of their produce in the mandis.

What are your other priorities?
My top priority is to provide a clean and transparent administration. My efforts are to make myself very easily accessible for the general public.

Any message for the general public?
Recently at a press conference about the elections,I had made it clear that it was not necessary for the licence holders to deposit their firearms.

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Only those persons,against whom criminal cases are pending need to deposit their weapons. Many persons are coming to my office to deposit their firearms.

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All licence holders need not deposit firearms before elections

Vikas Garg joined as the Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner in January-end following the transfer of Sumer Singh Gurjar,whose tenure was marred by controversies.

All licence holders need not deposit firearms before elections