Opinion of Punjab platform debuts in Chandigarh

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Over 1,000 people joined the launch at Tagore Theatre

Chandigarh, September 17

Opinion of Punjab, a citizen-led, non-profit digital public agenda platform, was launched at Tagore Theatre in Chandigarh on September 17 with the participation of more than 1,000 people. The platform aimed to collect public issues from across Punjab and consolidate them from village and ward levels to Assembly constituency, district, parliamentary constituency, and state levels.

The platform was designed to bring together concerns from more than 13,000 villages, over 2,100 municipal wards, 117 Assembly constituencies and 23 districts. It provided for citizen participation at multiple levels, with issues proposed at the grassroots level being consolidated into constituency-wise and district-wise agendas.

Founder Himanshu Pathak said Punjab’s agenda should be shaped by its people, village by village and constituency by constituency. He said the platform was intended to make public participation continuous, visible and meaningful.

Pathak said democracy required a mechanism to hear people beyond election periods and described Opinion of Punjab as a space for citizens to raise issues and shape a common public agenda.

The platform also introduced an Elected Representative Tracker covering 117 MLAs, 13 Lok Sabha MPs and seven Rajya Sabha MPs. It was designed to compile available information on their work, participation, public interventions, and accountability, as well as details on benefits and entitlements associated with elected office.

Through the Speak feature, citizens could raise issues and identify priorities at the village, ward, Assembly constituency, district and Punjab levels. The platform allowed users to participate anonymously or through a verified name and phone number.

Its Stand feature was designed to enable prospective electoral representatives to introduce themselves and connect with citizens across the state’s 117 Assembly constituencies.

The platform was presented as an ongoing civic participation mechanism focused on greater visibility of public concerns, transparency in representation, and accountability.