Farmers' welfare centre of our policies, Congress only doing politics: Haryana CM

Chandigarh, Jan 27 (PTI) Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Monday asserted that welfare of farmers was at the centre of BJP government's policies but the Congress has always "done politics" in the name of farmers.

Speaking to reporters on the completion of 100 days of his government, Saini touched upon several initiatives taken by the BJP government in Haryana during the past ten odd years. This is the third consecutive term for the BJP in the state.

"The welfare of farmers is at the centre of our policies. We are implementing new policies to enhance farmers' prosperity and make agriculture more profitable," Saini said.

The chief minister said last year, the government provided a bonus of Rs 2,000 per acre for agricultural and horticultural crops affected by adverse weather conditions during the Kharif-2024 season. A total amount of Rs 1,345 crores has been provided to farmers so far, he said.

Saini slammed the Congress for "doing politics" in the name of farmers. "The BJP, on the other hand, has always worked to empower the farmers," he said.

Haryana has become the first state in the country to purchase every grain of all crops at the Minimum Support Price (MSP).

He also named several crops being procured by the government, in a swipe at Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda who has questioned the government's claim, saying it should name the 24 crops it is procuring at MSP.

Saini said Rs 122 crore was released as a subsidy for 10,393 crop residue management machines. The CM said that Rs 216.25 crore was released as fodder subsidies for cow shelters in the state.

He also highlighted that the progress of housing schemes in the state, saying the government's aim is to ensure that even the poorest person has a house.

In the 100 days, the government has provided financial assistance of Rs 11.53 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban and Rural) to help 885 families build permanent homes, he said.

Saini added that the government has also initiated the Mukhyamantri Gramin Awas Yojana for poor families. Under the scheme, 15,256 poor families in 14 cities have been provided 30-square-yard plots.

He said the government has made provisions in the budget for the 77,000 beneficiaries who have applied for the PM Awas Yojana. Besides, directions have been issued to conduct surveys for creating a list of new beneficiaries.

Coming down heavily on the Congress, Saini said when it was in power it promised to provide 100-square-yard plots of land to the poor but neither they made any efforts to handover the papers of the promised plots to the beneficiaries nor the possession.

He added that the BJP government understood the pain of the poor and worked to provide them with possession of plots.

Saini said today, people trust that the BJP government is working in the interest of the poor.

Saini inaugurated 324 creches across the state, an initiative aimed at welfare of women and children.

The aim of these centres is to provide assistance to working women in their field of work and to provide a nurturing and safe environment for their children, he said.

Saini further said that to give more speed to the 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' campaign, it has been decided to make all women sarpanches the brand ambassadors of their villages.

A target has been set to make 5 lakh women 'Lakhpati Didis' in the state. So far, 1.85 lakh women have been made Lakhpati Didi, he said.

Saini said the Haryana Government will provide drone pilot training to 5,000 women to carry forward the vision of 'Namo Drone Didi'. So far, 100 women have been given free drones after training. They will be given drones worth up to Rs 8 lakh, he said. PTI SUN SKY SKY

Source: PTI