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Three years on, martyr Sukhdev’s ancestral house still lies forgotten in Ludhiana
In 2018, Punjab CM had announced ₹1 crore for the structure’s maintenance and a direct approach road from Chaura Bazaar, but work never kicked off
With less than a week left for the Independence Day, while the administration is gearing up for celebrations, the ancestral house of freedom fighter Sukhdev Thapar continues to remain forgotten in the narrow lanes of Naughara Mohalla near Chaura Bazaar.
Having stood the test of time so far, the building’s walls are gradually losing strength, water is seeping into the structure due to leaking water pipes and heaps of garbage lie strewn around the structure, reflecting the administration’s apathy towards its legacy.
This, despite chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh announcing a ₹1-crore grant in 2018 for the beautification of the 70 square yards building and a direct passage from Chaura Bazaar.
For three years, the martyr’s kin and members of the Shaheed Sukhdev Thapar Memorial Trust have been making rounds of government offices to get the work kick-started, but in vain.
“Even in 2013, the central government had announced a grant of ₹81 lakh for the building’s maintenance and a direct approach road after we moved the Punjab and Haryana high court. But only ₹12 lakh were spent,” said Ashok Thapar, president, Shaheed Sukhdev Thapar Memorial Trust.
“The house is immensely special because this is where Sukhdev Thapar was born on May 15, 1907. As it’s over 150 years old, it requires extensive repairs. Even the monument clerk deputed by the archaeology department of the state government rarely visits the building. It is the last memory of the martyr and his heritage. At least the garbage should be cleared from the house,” he added.
According to the trust members, besides repairs, a direct approach road to the house was also important so that more people could visit the historical landmark. Currently, people have to negotiate narrow lanes to reach the site, while many don’t even know it exists.
Trust’s secretary Tribhuvan Thapar said the government on July 14 had issued a notification for conducting social impact assessment before acquiring land for creating the direct approach road. It had directed the authorities to complete this in 15 days, but the process had yet to be started, he added.
Sukhdev Thapar, commonly known as Sukhdev, was executed along with Bhagat Singh and Rajguru by the British colonial government on March 23, 1931.
Despite several attempts, deputy commissioner (DC) Varinder Kumar Sharma was not available for comments.
Meanwhile, MC commissioner Pardeep Sabharwal said, “We are already working on the social impact assessment. I will direct the officials to expedite the process. The sanitation staff will clean the area around the house soon.”
