Safer roads, industrial development, top priority

PANCHKULA: The first woman MLA from Kalka constituency, Latika Sharma is quite confident of proving her worth for the seat. An advocate by profession, Sharma said she was ready to face the challenges and has analyzed the problems of the public well in the last few months that she spent campaigning.
According to her, the election campaign helped her understand the problems in Kalka."These elections have connected me with the people and now I am more aware of the problems here. There is a lot that needs to be worked upon," stated the newly-elected MLA.
Safer roads
Her top priority is to get work started on the road connecting Surajpur with Baddi. The state government acquired the land for the project in 2009, but it failed to kick off.
"Once that road is ready, heavy traffic would be diverted and we would be able to prevent major accidents, which are quite frequent in the area. That road is also important as the development of infrastructure is really important for the overall growth of any area," she told.
Better education facilities
Improving facilities for education is another area that Latika is targeting. She says she will try to open more government schools in Kalka and invite more private schools to raise the standard of education. She blames poor governance for the condition of educational institutes in the constituency. "I feel that the quality of education lacks here. Lots of sincere efforts are required to raise the standards so that our children do not need to leave their own place and go out to avail education. I would work to open more quality educational institutes," she said.
Eyeing industrial boom
Industrial development of Kalka is also one of her top agendas. "Although there are many industries in Kalka, none of them is of a large scale. I want to see this sector boom and bring it at par with Panchkula at least. As BJP is ruling both the Centre and the state, it would help us bring effective industrial development programmes and policies to Kalka," said Latika.
Empowered women
Empowerment of women is a key area for her. According to her, no country can progress if its women are not at par with the men. "I would like to start some training centres for women. It is very important that women become self dependent and confident enough to lead a comfortable life in this male-dominated society."