Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday interacted virtually with beneficiaries of various Central schemes and released Rs 21,000 crore as the 11th installment of the Kisan Samman Nidhi after arriving in Shimla for a rally to mark the eighth anniversary of his Government. Many Union Ministers joined the function virtually from across the country along with beneficiaries.
The public programme marking the completion of eight years of the Government led by Modi is being organised across the country at State capitals, district headquarters, and Krishi Vigyan Kendras.
The Sammelan is planned to encourage elected public representatives across the country to directly interact with the public to get feedback about the various welfare programmes being run by the Government.
Addressing a rally to mark the eighth anniversary of his Government, Modi listed the achievements of his Government. He said his Government pruned nine crore fake names from the list of beneficiaries of various schemes.
“Be it Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana or scholarship or any other scheme, we have eradicated the scope of corruption through direct transfer of benefits. We have transferred over Rs 22 lakh crore to the bank accounts of beneficiaries of various schemes through direct benefit transfer,” the Prime Minister said.
He said poverty was on the decline in the country and even the international agencies were admitting it. Modi said that before 2014, there was news about various scams but now his Government’s development schemes and zero-tolerance against corruption are discussed.
About his Government's measures to combat the Covid pandemic, Modi said nearly 200 crore vaccine doses have been administered in India so far. India exported Covid vaccines to various countries and Himachal Pradesh’s Baddi industrial unit played a vital role in manufacturing those jabs, the Prime Minister told the rally.
''Now India extends a hand of friendship not under compulsion but to help others as was done by providing Covid vaccines to several countries,'' the prime minister added.
Referring to the under-construction AIIMS in Bilaspur, he said, ''We plan to build a medical college in every district of the country.'' ''I do not consider myself prime minister. Rather, I consider myself as 'pradhan sevak' and a member of the family of 130-crore Indians and my life is for them,'' Prime Minister Modi told the rally. Before the rally, interacted virtually with beneficiaries of various Central schemes and released Rs 21,000 crore as the 11th installment of the Kisan Samman Nidhi.
Following his arrival at the Mall Road in the Himachal Pradesh capital, Modi, accompanied by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, walked to the venue of the rally in Ridge Maidan around 11.30 pm. There the Prime Minister interacted with the beneficiaries of the Central schemes from across the country.
During one such interaction, Modi told Santoshi, a woman from Karnatka's Kalaburagi, that he was impressed by the way she expressed her views and had she been a BJP worker he would have asked her to contest polls. An ex-serviceman from Ladakh told the prime minister that he has benefitted from the Jal Jeevan Mission and PM Aawas Yojana and faced no hiccup in availing the benefits of the scheme.
Lalita Devi from Bihar's Banka informed Modi that she has got a 'pucca' house and a toilet under the PM Awas Yojana Rural. Pankaj Sahani from Tripura said that he had got a ration card under the 'One Nation, One card' scheme. Sama Devi from Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur told the prime minister that she got Rs 1 lakh for building a 'pucca' house under the PM Awas Yojana (Gramin) and that she got Rs. 6,000 in three installments in a year under the Kisan Samman Nidhi.
Union Minister Anurag Thakur, Himachal Pradesh Minister Suresh Bhardwaj, state BJP chief, and Shimla MP Suresh Kashyap were also present on the stage at the rally.
