‘Now I have a full term. Will ensure Vikas Yatra is implemented’
NEWDELHI: Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani promises to carry forward PM Narendra Modi’s development initiatives more energetically during his second stint, after the BJP won the assembly elections last December in a state the party has been ruling since 2001. In an interview to
Smriti Kak Ramachandran
on Sunday, Rupani said BJP is the lone party in recent years to buck anti-incumbency and wrest power in states ruled by other parties. be a focus area, with stress on manufacturing and service sectors and self-employment. For middle class, focus will be on healthcare and education. In the past four years, all state assembly results were a mandate against the incumbent government. This (Gujarat) is the first election where BJP got another chance. A lot of churning on the social engineering front happened here in the past two years; the state was socially upset over caste issues. Social polarisation led to some loss of seats. Every election is contested differently. If the Congress’s vote share has gone up in this elec- tion, it does not mean it will happen in the next. The Congress could not do what we did to their governments in Maharashtra, Assam, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. We removed them. The Congress could not dislodge the BJP. More than 80% of the total employment generated in the country is in Gujarat. We are ahead in job creation in manufacturing and service sectors. As for farmers, the shortage of water is for a year. But rabi and kharif crops will get full irrigation. In the past two years, our government has given minimum support price (MSP) for groundnut procurement. It was an election issue. Hardik (Patel) wanted a truck with Congress, but it didn’t work. Dalit leader Jignesh’s (Mewani) win was from a seat traditionally won by Congress; he did not dislodge a BJP leader. He will be exposed as it’s time to deliver. There is a perception that self-financed schools are a law unto themselves. We took the initiative to pass a law to ensure transparency in fee determination and make school managements accountable. We want schools to justify the fees they charge. Those offering more facilities can charge more. That is natural, we don’t object. But there has to be some accountability. We have set up regional committees that will take all aspects, including profit into account and fix fees. Schools can appeal against such committees’ decision with state-level committees. This model, endorsed by courts, is worth emulating.