PARTICIPATING APPROACH IN DEVELOPMENTAL
ACTIVITIES IS THE NEED OF THE HOUR - KASHIRAM RANA
4th
EDITOR’S CONFERENCE ON SOCIAL SECTOR ISSUES INAUGURATED
PROJECT
PROPOSALS CLEARED TO CONNECT 40,000 HABITATIONS WITH
67,000 KM RURAL ROADS
NATIONAL
AWARDS FOR BEST PERFORMING PANCHAYAT
Shri Kashiram Rana,
Union Minister for Rural Development urged the media to focus
more on Rural Development on making people realise that they are
themselves the agents of development and change. Inaugurating
Fourth Editor’s Conference on Social Sector Issues here today,
Shri Rana emphasised to inculcate amongst them the feeling of
community ownership of assets and build in them a confidence that
they should not be dependent on Government initiatives alone but
participate fully in the development process, and in the operation
and maintenance of rural infrastructure.
Shri Rana said,
Ministry of Rural Development is one of the largest Ministries
in terms of budgetary allocation; as against the Ninth Plan allocation
of Rs.42,874 crore, the Tenth Plan allocation of funds for Rural
Development Ministry is Rs.76,774 crore. This increase is part
of the Government’s commitment to set apart a major share of funding
for rural development sector.
The Ministry
of Rural Development has made concerted effort to strengthen the
Panchayati Raj Institutions by giving them a key role in implementing
of various rural development programmes such as Sampoorna Grameen
Rozgar Yojana, (SGRY) Swajaldhara, Hariyali and the Total Sanitation
Campaign. Ministry has been pursuing with the States to strengthen
the Panchayati Raj Institutions by exhorting them to hold elections
and devolve administrative and financial powers to such elected
bodies. As a result of continuous efforts, except for Jharkhand
and Pondichery, all States have had their elections to the Panchayati
Raj bodies. Shri U.V. Krishnam Raju, Minister of State for Rural
Development, Shri M. Shankar, Secretary, Rural Development and
Shri P. Mohan Das, Secretary, Rural Water Supply were also present
there.
Shri Rana informed
to mark the celebration of ten years since the passing of the
Constitution (73rd Amendment) Act, the Ministry of
Rural Development has launched in 2003 National Awards to the
Best Performing Panchayats. The award will be given to 6 District
Panchayats, 12 Intermediate Panchayats and 50 Gram Panchayats,
to be selected on the basis of their performance and implementation
of Hariyali, Swajaldhara, Sanitation, SGRY, water harvesting programmes
of the Ministry and performance in the areas of Health and Family
Welfare, Education and tax collection etc. The amount of award
will be Rs.30 lakh each for District Panchayats, Rs.20 lakhs each
for Intermediate Panchayats and Rs.10 lakhs each for Gram Panchayats.
Listing out various
initiatives taken by Ministry of Rural Development Shri Rana said
that rural roads are vital to economic growth and poverty alleviation
in rural areas, in December, 2000, Government of India launched
a major initiative-Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, (PMGSY) with
the objective of providing connectivity to all unconnected habitations
with a population of more than 1,000 persons by the year 2003
and for habitations with population of 500 by the year 2007. Project
proposals for Rs, 9,000 crore have been cleared so far aiming
to connect about 40,000 habitations with road works of about 67,000
kms. Out of these 15,000 road works have been already completed.
For this programme, the Xth Plan allocation if Rs,12,500 crores
as against Rs.5000 crores during the IXth Plan. Considering the
size of investment required to meet the target, which is Rs.60,000
crores, external funding avenues and further resource generation
are constantly being explored.
Drinking water,
housing, sanitation are basic elements for dignified existence.
The Department has been mandated to provide potable drinking water
to all villages by the year 2004. Special efforts are being made
to provide safe drinking water in rural habitations affected by
water quality problems like fluorosis, arsenic, brackishness,
excess, iron etc. and to conserve water sources. For this programme,
the Xth Plan allocation is of Rs.12,545 crores as against Rs.8150
crores during the IXth Plan.
Shri Rana informed
that construction of 13 lakh houses annually in rural areas has
been taken up for the BPL families. 56 lakhs rural houses have
been constructed during the last 5 years with an investment of
about Rs.10,860 crores. Under Rural Building Centre (RBC), 75
Rural Building Centres have been sanctioned and Rs.4.67 crore
has been released so far. Under innovative Stream for Rural Housing
and Habitat Development, 176 projects have been sanctioned and
Rs.31.86 crore has been released for implementation of the projects
so for. For Rural Housing, the Xth Plan allocation is Rs.8603
crores as against Rs. 7285 crores during the IXth Plan.
In order to promote
cleanliness and hygiene in rural areas. Central Rural Sanitation
Programme was restructured in 1999. The programme is being implemented
in 350 Districts. Shri Rana announced that with a view to motivate
the PRI members, officials and NGOs working for promotion of rural
sanitation, Government of India has launched Nirmal Gram Puraskar.
All the Panchayats, Blocks and Districts which attain full sanitation
coverage and eliminate the practice of open defecation, and also
NGOs and individuals who are the driving force, will be handsomely
rewarded.
Under Sampoorna Grameen
Rozgar Yojana, during the last year, as per provisional figures,
73.41 crore man days were generated. For tackling the problem
of unemployment amongst the rural poor, a major programme for
creating self employment opportunities namely Swaranjayanti Gram
Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) was launched on 1st April.
1999 by restructuring Integrated Rural Development Programme and
its allied schemes. Upto now, 14.5 lakh Self Help Groups have
been mobilised and 37 lakh swarozgaris have been assisted with
an investment of Rs.7500 crore," Shri Rana added.
Shri Rana highlighted
that in the last five years new watershed projects have been taken
up in 138 lakh hectares of wasteland/degraded land. A new initiative
Hariyali was launched in January 2003 for the watershed development
programmes being implemented through Panchayati Raj Institutions.
For drought proofing
and augmenting water supply for critically drought affected areas,
specially the areas where drinking water is a major problem, a
Centrally Sponsored scheme called Pradhan Mantri Gram Jal Samwardhan
Yojana (PMGJSY) has been formulated. .
Editors, writers,
correspondents and columnist from all parts of the country are
participating in the Conference jointly organised by Press Information
Bureau and Ministry of Rural Development.
