State governments under BJP rule are competing with each other for dubious achievements simply to keep the public's attention diverted from critical issues affecting citizens. Take the case of lighting @ 27,00,000 diyas on the ghats of Saryu river in Ayodhya for Diwali using taxpayer's money. A Guinness record was also created for the maximum number of diya 'rotations' (whatever that means); 73,000 litres of oil and 55,00,000 cotton wicks were used for this purpose. A considerable amount was also spent on fireworks, temple illumination , lasers and drone shows. The dozens of crores spent on this wasteful pursuit could have been better utilised to actually light up the lives of the poor. Closer home we enjoyed a 'historic' moment at Calangute where Goa's tallest saffron flag (Bhagwa Dhwaj) rising to a height of 100 feet was unveiled by a religious leader. Meanwhile the Rakhandar shrine nearby is surrounded by trash. How do these flagmasts, diyas and other examples of extreme religious fervour help the common man or solve the issues of unemployment, backbreaking price rise, social strife, increasing crime, corruption etc ? Would someone enlighten us please ?
