Jhargram (WB), Oct 23 West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday directed the Jhargram district magistrate to ensure a comprehensive revival of the district within six months, announcing a series of measures covering healthcare, housing, infrastructure, education, employment and welfare schemes.
“We have taken up five flagship programmes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi campaigned in Jhargram and had ‘jhal muri’, and it is my responsibility, along with my colleagues and the administration, to fulfil his guarantees,” Adhikari said.
“Cooperate with the state government. There will be employment also. I will ask the DM to ensure the total revival of Jhargram within the next six months. Not in speech, but in work,” he said.
He called for improvements in healthcare infrastructure, saying every Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Kendra and block healthcare facility should have X-ray and ultrasonography machines.
“I hope Jhargram Medical College does not become a referral hospital. I want the medical college to have all facilities, including an ICU and everything,” he said.
The chief minister said the government had allocated Rs 342 crore for development in tribal-dominated areas, including roads, solar panels, high-mast lights and community halls.
He said the old-age pension had been increased from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 and 2,71,669 people in Jhargram were receiving the allowance.
Accusing the previous government of not participating in several central schemes, Adhikari said his government had taken up 881 projects worth Rs 125 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA), of which Rs 54.80 crore had already been received by the state administration.
“I hope all the officials, including the Zilla Sabhadhipati and MPs, under the guidance of the district magistrate, will complete these works,” he said.
The state would soon introduce the ‘Adivasi Mahila Sashaktikaran Yojana (AMSY)’ and ‘Adivasi Shiksha Rinn Yojana (ASRY)’ in the district in collaboration with the Centre, he said.
Adhikari also announced plans to establish a dedicated university for tribal communities in Bankura and Jhargram.
He said he had retained the Paschimanchal Unnayan department and that proposals worth Rs 59.50 lakh had recently been received.
A sanction of Rs 2.5 crore had been issued before the Durga Puja holidays, with approval for the remaining proposals to follow, he said.
Taking a swipe at the previous government, Adhikari claimed that the earlier chief minister had carried out development work worth only Rs 6 crore across the entire Paschimanchal region.
In contrast, he said, his government had undertaken substantial work across Jhargram’s eight blocks within six months.
On the Annapurna Yojana, Adhikari said 2,81,427 women aged between 25 and 60 years across the district’s eight blocks had applied, of whom 2,72,903 had received approval and payments.
He said 6,163 beneficiaries had encountered account-related problems and that he would ask the district magistrate to resolve the issues so they could receive their payments.
Under Ayushman Bharat, 10,21,759 applicants had been registered, while 9,12,769 had been digitised after a survey, he said, referring to the scheme’s health coverage benefits.
The chief minister also announced that another 65,140 houses would be constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, with Rs 1.25 lakh provided for each house.
He said Rs 12,000 would be provided for toilet construction and referred to solar panels being made available under the PM Surya Ghar scheme.
Adhikari said the government would expand employment opportunities under the VB RAM G scheme.
Alleging irregularities under the previous government, he claimed that public funds had been misused by showing fictitious beneficiaries and that money had been siphoned off by presenting cowsheds as houses.
The chief minister said the government had sent a proposal worth Rs 121 crore to the Centre for upgrading horticulture, healthcare, power, public health engineering and skill development facilities.
“This will be only for Jhargram and not for any other district,” he said.
Adhikari also spoke about the Maoist insurgency and the political violence that had affected Jangalmahal in the past, alleging that tribal and marginalised communities had faced harassment during the Maoist and CPI(M) periods.
He claimed that members of communities such as the Hansda, Soren, Tudu, Murmu, Majhi, Singh and Mahato had faced persecution after being branded Maoists.
Referring to what he called the Lalbabura comprehensive integrated development plan, the chief minister said the government was pursuing a coordinated approach to development in the region.
On the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), Adhikari said it would be implemented but that the Kurmi and Adivasi communities would be excluded.
“We respect them. We have decided not to keep the Kurmis and the Adivasi communities in the UCC,” he said.
Earlier, Adhikari inaugurated his government’s nutrition support scheme for eligible tribal families, under which they would be provided rice, pulses, cooking oil and soya chunks every week.
“This special drive will be in addition to the ration scheme under the PM Annasurakhya Yojana, aimed at ensuring that no one from the tribal communities is deprived of nutritious food,” he said.
The scheme to provide nutrition and food security to families belonging to Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) was announced by the state government in this year’s budget.
It would benefit 70,000 families in Jhargram and Paschim Medinipur districts, the chief minister said at a government event at Kalajharia, a village in Jhargram dominated by the Lodha-Sabar tribal community.
“We had announced a special drive in Jhargram to ensure nutrition and food security for families belonging to Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups in the budget. Today, I am inaugurating it from here. There will be biometric verification to make sure that not a single eligible family is deprived of the scheme’s benefits,” Adhikari said.
(PTI News)
