Focus on ‘davai, padhai, rozgar’, PM Modi advises party CMs on governance
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked BJP chief ministers on Saturday to focus on garib kalyan (welfare of the poor) by delivering “davai” (healthcare), “padhai” (education) and “rozgar” (employment) and make them model states in implementing central schemes.
The PM’s missive is being seen as a counter to the Opposition’s charge of the government being pro-rich and allegations of faltering central schemes.
During a peptalk to all BJP chief ministers, Modi also asked them to think beyond “roti, kapda aur makan”, one of the cornerstones of successive nonBJP governments at the Centre.
He asked the CMs to go on “mission mode” to deliver results.
“We had a long discussion on how to effectively implement the Centre’s schemes in states,” Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said later.
With assembly polls due in seven states next year, the PM formed a group led by threetime CM Chouhan to co-ordinate between different states to help them emulate the best practices of other BJP-ruled states.
Earlier, BJP president Amit Shah emphasised the party’s bold steps on reforms.
“We have remained committed to reforms without caring for vote-bank politics and have laid the foundation for many welfare schemes to form welfare states,” Shah said.
NEW DELHI: Winning over the poor was at the heart of Saturday’s meeting of BJP chief ministers, with the party forming a committee to finalise a “garib kalyan agenda” and Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking them to work in “mission mode” to make their states a model for execution of his government’s schemes, mostly aimed at benefiting the poor.
Modi exhorted them to work on multiple fronts to develop their states at a fast rate, saying they should not just move to one project after finishing another and instead take up several programmes together without showing any lapse.
CMs of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Jharkhand — Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Devendra Fadnavis, Raghubar Das — besides party vice president Vinay Sahasrabuddhe will prepare the poor’s welfare agenda that will fix a few common goals for the partyruled states.
The day-long meeting deliberated over six subjects, including welfare of the poor and farmers, woman empowerment, youth and employment besides good governance, with Modi speaking about schemes covering these sectors.
“The Prime Minister asked us to work in mission mode; to take up several works at once and show no lapses. Then we can develop fast,” Chouhan told a press conference after the meeting.
With the party and its governments facing attack from the Opposition over issues concerning Dalits and minorities, it believes that a stronger emphasis on welfare schemes, especially targeting the poor, can firewall it against adverse political outcome and instead help it reach out to the weaker sections.