Clock begins ticking, ministers hit the ground running
LUCKNOW: Like in his first term, chief minister Yogi Adityanath would continue with the practice of submitting the government’s report card at regular intervals. That is perhaps why he has ordered the ministers to prepare a 100-day work plan.
Nearly all the ministers, including former bureaucrat- turned-politician AK Sharma (who has the key portfolios of urban development and power) and Jal Shakti minister Swatantra Dev Singh, admitted as much. Both of them took charge on Wednesday.
“We would act with such speed that you would find it difficult to catch up (with the progress),” said Sharma soon after taking charge.
All the ministers who have taken charge of their departments have ordered their officers to prepare a detailed plan on key projects that are to take shape over the first three months.
“Our priority is outlined in our party’s Lok Kalyan Sankalp Patra and that is the basic reference point for all of us,” said Jitin Prasada, the public works department (PWD) minister.
For certain decisions like increasing the quantum of punishment for forcible conversion or duping women by faking identities (referred to as Love Jihad), the ruling party would have to get the move ratified by the assembly. But, certain other commitments, likely to be unveiled over the next 100 days, could be rolled out through cabinet clearances. Such decisions include setting up of subsidised kitchens, free scooty for women and distribution of laptops/tablets to students. Key pre-poll commitments of the BJP include free power supply to farmers for irrigation purposes and clearing sugarcane dues of farmers within 14 days of coming to power and repaying them with the interest for each day’s delay thereafter.
“In first three months itself, this government would have initiated moves that would reflect the plan to develop the state into country’s top economy,” a BJP leader said. The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), too, was helping the government finding solutions to complex issues like unemployment, the BJP leader said. The Yogi 2.0 government is likely to announce vacancies in several government departments and those would be filled in a “transparent, time-bound manner.”
However, as a senior leader noted, only government jobs won’t be able to solve the issue of growing unemployment and hence the government has also tried to consider alternative employment models as also to create entrepreneurs by providing loans. In his first stint as chief minister, Adityanath had held detailed meetings with each minister and the officers in a bid to understand the functioning of those departments.
In his second stint, Adityanath has ordered departmental presentations at cabinet meetings would be made by ministers of those departments and that officers would merely assist them.
Political experts noted two key takeaways of the decision.
“It appears that the decision is aimed at conveying that the ministers come prepared for departmental presentations as also to discreetly convey that the Yogi 2.0 government would not be run by bureaucrats,” said AP Tiwari, a political analyst who added that the message that the
Yogi 2.0 is trying to send out to the people is that it has hit the ground running.
“There aren’t any long celebrations to mark a spectacular comeback. It’s obvious that (with) 2024 Lok Sabha elections in mind, the government, perhaps aware of the increased muscle that the opposition has acquired in the assembly, is unwilling to let complacency creep in. That is why within hours of the swearing-in, Adityanath had convened a quick introductory meeting of his ministers and emphasised transparency, ”Tiwari added.
Many of the ministers like deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak had acted immediately after taking charge. Tasked with the key health portfolio, Pathak had acted on the complaint of a woman, who had claimed that a private hospital duped her.