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Monday, March 26, 2018

Invest not just spend. It’s public money.

We in Puducherry have revived two existing lakes, with another third in the process, without any external financial borrowing in the last few months. 

We just did it by collaborative pooling in. 
We cleaned its boundaries or BUNDH of open defecation, cow dung, liquor bottles strewn around.. 
Planted trees along the boundary, we returned pigs to their owners, stopped spewing sewerage water into it or throwing garbage into the water. We had solutions. They were not interconnected 
We stopped water drainage by checking water theft. 

And we used near by places to share street lights to begin with. The Tourism Dept brought in rowing and paddle boats, put up sign posts of timings for use of the lake. The local community set up kiosks to sell refreshments. 
We put up benches from brick and mortar with us in our godowns or rubble yards. 
We asked a local bank to offer CSR services for installing watch camera or offer a few security guards. 
And the neighbouring resident associations also came together to now maintain and oversee by using it as a locality place of recreation. 

Local schools, colleges offered NSS students who pitched in to maintain and keep vigil. 
The Member Parliament offered support for the Walk way by sharing some resources from his MP local area development fund. 

Had we not come together in this way we would have spent money. 
Instead we gave it our time and energy. And took responsibility for our own respective areas. 
This is a model of synergy and austerity we can consider. 
Let’s do so whereever possible. Save what we can. 

Spend where we must because time is precious. 
Without postponing Development. 
Let us invest in collaboration. 
All public money is earned money. 
Invest not spend.. 
Be austere and remain trustworthy...
Make it win win.