Jai Ram calls on Shah, seeks bigger vaccine quota for HP
Also meets Union ministers of finance, defence, road, transport and highways
SHIMLA: Himachal Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur met Union home minister Amit Shah, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, defence minister Rajnath Singh and minister for road, transport and highways Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi on Monday.
During his meeting with Shah, the CM thanked the Centre for providing an adequate number of vaccine doses and oxygen generation plants to the hill state to help combat the pandemic. He requested Shah to enhance the state’s allocation of vaccine doses in order to cover all eligible people in the state as soon as possible.
Thakur also sought approval for a bulk drug park to be set up in Una. “The park will help our country prepare raw material for manufacturing of drugs, thereby reducing our dependence on foreign countries,” the CM said, while urging the minister to make the Baddi-barotiwala-nalagarh (BBN) an industrial node and to sanction a medical devices park, electric devices manufacturing hub and other development projects to generate employment opportunities for the youth of the state.
Shah appreciated the efforts of the state government in vaccinating the citizens and acknowledged that HP had the distinction of inoculating the highest percentage of people.
The CM requested Sitharaman to provide the financial assistance recommended by the 15th finance commission to the state. He said HP lacks the resources to invest in infrastructure projects, especially Kangra and Mandi airports.he also apprised the minister regarding a tourism project worth ₹1,892 crore posed to Asian Development Bank (ADB) for funding, which is awaiting approval.
He also sought GST compensation due from the centre for the financial years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-2020 and urged the minister to expedite the negotiations with the world bank for funding the Himachal hydro power and renewable power sector development programme. He also held discussions for allowing ropeway connectivity as an alternate mode of connectivity under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY).
While discussing the Bhanupali -Bilaspur rail line, Thakur asked that all rail projects of state be considered of national importance and be funded entirely by Centre. Sitharaman assured the CM of all possible assistance.
Thakur thanked Gadkari for sanctioning projects worth ₹193 crore to the state under the Central Road and Infrastructure Fund (CRIF). “These roads will go a long way in strengthening the road connectivity in the hill state,” he said.
Thakur discussed four laning of the Shimla-matour and Mandi-pathankot national highways and requested maintenance of existing alignments of the national highways where work has been started by the executing agency.
Gadkari said he will include road projects from the state in the second phase of Bharat Mala Road Project, which will help boosting religious tourism in the state. He said that work will start on the Kaithlighatdhalli-shimla bypass soon.
The CM sought speedy notification of 25 national highways approved in principle and invited Gadkari to visit the state. Additional chief secretary to the chief minister JC Sharma had accompanied Thakur.