Congress believes in clean politics and not in the politics of region and religion and dividing people on lines of caste and colour stated Chief Minister, Shri Virbhadra Singh while addressing a well attended public meeting at Shillai, in district Sirmaur today.Chief Minister is on two days visit to Sirmaur district.He said that only those resort to cheap politics, who want to achieve their own selfish motive rather than caring for the welfare of the people. He said we should serve the people voluntarily. He said twice the BJP government under the Chief Ministership of Shri Prem Kumar Dhumal framed false charges against him and on both the occasions he faced session trial and came out clean. And now my case of Income Tax was being probed by three investigating agencies, he said, which was quite surprising.The policy of the Congress party has always been to empower the people for their overall development and the best way to do so was to provide them basic and quality education, he said, adding that a well educated society leads to the development of the Nation thus ensuring prosperity of one and all. I want everyone to be educated and be a responsible citizen of the country and contribute in Nation building.
“Times and again, I am being criticised by the opposition for opening educational institutions in numbers, but I want to make them understand that the Congress believes in educating the society as a whole for development of the State”, he said. Today there were as many as 113 colleges, mostly opened during the congress regime, besides 15,534 schools in the State. Most schools had been either opened or upgraded in rural and far flung areas and it was a matter of pride that the girls in rural areas had outnumbered boys in such a educational institutions, he said. He said that the government was committed to open school even in such far flung and remote areas where there would be three students
The Chief Minister also stressed the need for preservation of culture, customs, traditions and language for up-keeping ones identity. A person or a society could only be recognised because of its distinct culture and language. We should have a separate identity so as to be recognised from the region or religion we belong to or we possess, he said. Civilisations perish, which fail to preserve their culture and traditions, he said.He said that besides electioneering, he believes in meeting the people and to know about the progress being undertaken by various departments and addressing grievances of the people at their doorsteps. For the very reason, I have decided to travel all areas of the State extensively, he added.He said that a medical college was soon coming up in Nahan for which a provision of Rs 189 crore had been made followed by opening of Medical colleges in Hamirpur and Chamba. He said that apart from this the ESIC medical college and hospital at Ner Chowk in Mandi was also being taken over by the Government. The government was opening Indian Institute of Management at Dhaula Kuan in Sirmaur district.
Announcements made by Chief Minister
• Announced upgradation of sub-tehsil Kamarau to Tehsil,
• Announced upgradation of Primary Health Centre Kaffota to Community Health Centre
• 33 KV electric sub station to be opened at Kaffota
• Starting science classes from this academic session in GSSS, Kamrau
• Announced Rs 10 lakh for construction of Sarai (inn) of Chudeshwar temple, Jamna,
• Announced opening of ITI at Ronhat
• Mini secretariat at Shillai
• 33 KV Sub Station at Panog
• PHC at Timbi
• Health Sub Centre at Jasvi in GP Ajroli
• Lift Irrigation Supply Scheme at Matiyana in Shillai
• Announced upgradation of GHS Choki Margwal, Kharkhan, Arjoli and Dhar to GSSS
• Upgradation of Government Middle Schools POTA Manal, Dhamon and Dahar to GHS
• Upgraded Primary Schools, Bapi in GP Shiri Kyari, Manal Mahal in GP Loja, Kuraya in GP Kyari Gundah and Lani in GP Titiyana to Government Middle Schools
• Announced opening of new primary schools at Khatana in GP Kyari Gundah, Patna in GP Millah, Bari in GP Rast, Manoli Kedari in GP Panog, Kuffoti in GP JAkhando, Sunhor in GP Titiyana and Punbhar in GP Korga.
• Rs two crore for ITI building Shillai
• Rs 55 lakh for Shaheed Kalyan Singh Road in Shillai area
• Rs1.70 crore for Thonta-Jhakal road
• Rs 1.36 crore for metalling of Link Road to degree college Shillai.
The Chief Minister also directed to expedite the forest clearances to pave the way for completion of Andra-Kumla and Neda-Basa roads which had been sanctioned long back but were hanging due to forest clearances. He also directed to complete the work on Staoun- Chandni road connecting Sh Renuka ji for which a provision of over rupees three crores had been already made.He also addressed simultaneous public meetings at Kamrau and Kaffota. He said that the road from Paonta to Shillai and furthur till Rohru had been declared as National Highway and would soon be metalled soon in near future which would prove to be a life- line for the people of the area. He also distributed papers of the land allotted to as many as 36 families of Shamah village. Three Biswas of land was allotted to each family. The village was fast sinking and the land was allotted to rehabilitate them at Paonta. He said that a provision of rupees five crore had been made to start construction work of Kaffota college building, for which around 32 bighas of land was voluntarily donated by villagers.
Earlier, the Chief Minister inaugurated Science Block of Government Senior Secondary School Kaffota constructed at a cost of Rs 75.80 lakh. He also inaugurated Water supply Scheme Rangua-Pawar in village Jamna constructed with an outlay of Rs.2.19 crore to benefit as many as 3850 people of the area. He also inaugurated Rs. 77.82 lakh Lift Water supply Scheme Bali Koti.He also laid foundation stone of bridge on Satoun-Poka road to be constructed with an amount of Rs 75.45 lakh, laid the foundation stone of Water Supply Scheme Kamrau to cost Rs1.31 crore which will benefit a population of around 4200. He also, laid foundation stone of ITI building at Kaffota to be constructed at a cost of rupees six crore, laid foundation stone of Government College building at Kaffota to cost of Rs 15 crore., laid foundation stone of PHC building Jakhna to cost Rs 42.78 lakh.Irrigation and Public Health Minister, Smt. Vidya Stokes, also spoke on the occasion. She assured to fulfil the demands regarding the water supply scheme for Shillai area and said that every household of the area would have adequate drinking water facility soon. She said that during the last three years 6949 habitations had been provided drinking water facilities by spending a sum of Rs 773 crore, besides 10586 hectare of area had been provided irrigational facilities.She also advocated for empowering the women folk.
Chairman, Employment Generation and Resource Mobilisation, Shri Harshvardhan Chauhan earlier welcomed and honoured the Chief Minister and thanked him for dedicating projects worth Rs. 27 crore in Shillai constituency. He blamed the BJP for neglecting the development of the area and to take up the welfare measures with the government. He said that the BJP MLAs from the district had failed to take up the issues pertaining to development. He also supported the local demands of the area and listed the development. He urged for opening a degree college at Ronhat and a new water supply scheme for Shillai to meet the growing requirement of the rising population and immediate metalling of Shillai-Meenas road. He said that the the BJP MLAs were spreading rumours that the government was not serious to declare the Transgiri area of the district as Tribal, clarifying that the government had sent a proposal for providing tribal status to Transgiri area and the Survey in this regard was being done, the report of which had been sought within a month so that it could be forwarded to Union government.MLA, Shri Kirnesh Jung, Chairman, HIMFED, Shri Ajay Bahadur, DCC President, Shri Ajay Solanki, Member, Zila Parishad, Shri Pratap Singh Tomar, DC, Shri B.C. Badalia, SP, Ms. Soumya Sambasivan, Chief Engineer, PWD, Shri Ashok Chauhan, Chief Architect, Shri N.K. Negi were also present on the occasion amongst members of Youth Congress, Mahila Mandals and representatives of various nearby Panchayats.