After interacting with the beneficiaries of various government schemes in Raiwala, the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Ministry of Science and Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Ministry of Earth Science; MoS of Prime Minister’s Office and Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh chaired the ’DISHA’ (District Development Coordination & Monitoring Committee) meeting at Dehradun.
Members of Parliament Ramesh Pokhriyal and Naresh Bansal also attended the meeting.
The Union Minister said that the aim of the Union Government is to achieve 100% saturation of government schemes in a true sense. He added that it means that district magistrates use their discretionary powers to ensure that no bonafide eligible beneficiary remains outside the cover of the scheme.
Considering the frequent man-animal conflict in Uttarakhand, the Union Minister suggested to the district officials, a collaboration with the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research to find ways to reduce animals venturing into habitated areas.
Deliberating the implementation of the ‘Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana’, the Union Minister said that all banks should follow similar criteria while deciding on the eligibility of the applicant. While reviewing the construction under Gram Sadak Yojana, the Minister advocated taking into account the recent urbanisation of ‘rural’ areas and said that this means that higher standards of road construction should be adhered to. While discussing the hilly and often inaccessible nature of farming in Uttarakhand, the Union Minister recommended the greater use of drone technology in agriculture in collecting data, applying insecticide or conducting surveys.
Dr.Jitendra Singh outlined the need for such outreach meetings by stating that this provides a useful tool to flag issues that our varied geography engenders. Dr Singh said that it is a priority for Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi that hilly and newly founded states like Uttarakhand are brought on the path of rapid development.