Karnal: A day after Union minister Kumari Selja and some Congress leaders attacked him over "tardy implementation of Centre policies for the uplift of Dalits", Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Saturday said those "in air conditioned rooms should personally visit" the villages to see the development.
Hooda said that those sitting in air conditioned rooms in Delhi could not see how many plots have been allotted to the beneficiaries belonging to the Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes-A and those living Below the Poverty Line and how many schemes have been implemented for their welfare.
Speaking at `Dalit awareness sammelan` here yesterday, Selja, Birender Singh and another senior Congress leader Ishwar Singh had launched a veiled attack on the state government for tardy implementation of policies and programmes of the Centre for the uplift of the Dalits.
Selja had expressed apprehensions over the implementation of `Priyadarshini Awas Yojna`, saying "it might not meet the same fate as did the other schemes like the 100 square metre plots for the poor".
Hooda today launched a counter attack while speaking at a function in Karnal after launching `Priyadarshini Awas Yojna` (PAY) to provide affordable housing facilities to the people in rural areas in the state.
Without naming any of his detractors, Hooda asked them to "personally visit the villages" to see the development which has taken place in the state.
He said that prior to him, the government of the INLD-BJP remained in power in the state and all are aware that "they did nothing for the development of rural areas".
"During their six years tenure, they had spent only Rs 1,800 crore on rural development whereas our government has so far spent more than Rs 9,000 crore for the development of rural areas," the chief minister said.
While launching the PAY, Hooda transferred the first instalment of Rs 25,000 per beneficiary in the bank accounts of 30 beneficiaries through Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system.
Out of these beneficiaries, 28 belonged to the Scheduled Castes and the remaining two were from Backward Classes.
Speaking on the occasion, Hooda said that under the
scheme, two lakh houses would be constructed in the rural areas in a project span of two years.
Each of the beneficiaries would be given financial assistance of Rs 90,100 by the state as grant for the construction of a new house in three instalments, he said.
Hooda said that the state government would soon come up with a similar scheme for the urban areas so that the poor living in such areas could also construct `pucca` houses.
We have so far constructed 7,656 houses in urban areas in the state and 7,000 more would soon be constructed, he added.
Later, Hooda told reporters that he did not need "any
certificate from anyone" as support of the people of the state and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi was with him.
Hooda was asked to comment on the assertions made by Selja.
Asked to comment on the results of the elections to seven Municipal Corporations of the state, which went to polls recently, Hooda said that the people of the state are with Congress.
He said that 80 per cent of the seats in these elections have been won by candidates associated with Congress and at many places they remained on second or third positions.
The Congress had not contested the civic elections, but its supporters were free to contest as independents. After the results were out, the ruling Congress claimed that majority of those who won were its supporters.
Without naming INLD, the Chief Minister said that some Opposition parties were describing these elections as semi-final for the next Assembly polls, but the people of the state have rejected such parties.
"Now they were out of race for finals," he added.
In reply to another question, Hooda said that a meeting of all the elected councillors of Municipal Corporations would be convened before appointing mayors.
PTI
