‘Concerted efforts resulted in favourable SC verdict on SYL’
GUV’S ADDRESS Solanki wraps up 40page address in 16 minutes, skipping a large part of it
CHANDIGARH :Haryana governor Kaptan Singh Solanki on Monday said the state government’s concerted efforts had resulted in the Supreme Court’s favourable verdict that paved the way for initiating the long-pending construction of the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal.
Delivering his address on the opening day of the budget session in the state assembly here, Solanki referred to the all-party delegation that had submitted a memorandum on the SYL canal issue to the President, and said the Haryana government will keep pursuing the matter in the state’s interest.
The governor said besides several rejuvenation and repair projects for other canals and channels, a project for increasing the capacity of the carrier system, costing about ₹2,000 crore, was also being planned to utilise the surplus rainwater that drains into the Yamuna during monsoons.
Solanki summed up his 40-page address in about 16 minutes, skipping a large part of it. It’s very rare when a governor skips most of the address, asking the House to consider it as having been read.
POWER AND INFRA
On power front, Solanki reiterated the commitment of the state government to provide round-the-clock electricity and improve supply to rural areas. Panchkula had become the first district in the state to get 24-hour power supply, he said. Referring to infrastructural development, he said Haryana had sanctioned the highest ever amount of ₹1,818 crore to repair and upgrade 5,605 km of state highways, major district roads and village roads during the current year.
Solanki said under ‘Digital India’, the state government had identified 110 locations for setting up public wi-fi hotspots in the state. There was a plan to
establish wi-fi connectivity in 350 villages during 2017-18.
SOCIAL SECTOR
Lauding the ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ programme, he said the efforts made by the government had resulted in improvement in sex ratio at birth in Haryana
from 876 in 2015 to 900 in 2016.
On the health front, Solanki said the Union ministry of Ayush had sanctioned an All India Institute of Ayurved and Yog to be set up in Panchkula at a cost of about ₹500 crore while another All India Post Graduate Institute of Yoga and Naturopathy Education and Research is being set up in Jhajjar at a cost of ₹65.98 crore.
Keeping in view sacrifices of army personnel, he said the ex gratia amount for the next of kin of martyrs had been increased from ₹20 lakh to ₹50 lakh and 90 dependents of martyrs had been provided government jobs since October 2014. Solanki said the government had also adopted recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission on the pattern of the central government.
POLICE RECRUITMENT
Solanki said to ensure better policing, the state government had recruited 1,670 constables, while the process for recruitment of 5,000 more constables was to be completed soon. He said process for filling 5,432 posts of constable and 380 posts of sub-inspector during the next financial year had also begun. He said 1,089 new posts has been created for women.