State Finance Commission chairman Chandrashekhar Sahu on Saturday said that poverty-hit Gariaband district has all resources to emerge as a developed district and he would work hard to ensure its speedy development.
“Gariaband is always known as a sensitive district with unlimited opportunities for development. However, cooperation from locals is required to develop the district’’ the former lok Sabha MP Sahu told reporters at a press conference here.
According to Sahu who also served as a minister in Chhattisgarh Government, “Chief Minister Raman Singh has been taking care of the district and I have personally urged him to include Gariaband in a list of districts selected for promoting organic farming. Currently, Bijapur, Dantewada and Sukma have been enlisted under a special scheme aiming to promote organic farming in Chhattisgarh’’.
He further informed that State Government in the annual budget for 2016-17, tabled in state assembly this week has decided to ensure power supply to each and every village of the state by the year 2017.
Sahu said that the funds sanctioned under 14th finance commission have been directly transferred to Gram Panchayats and the Chhattisgarh finance commission will make sure that Gram Panchayats get the funds.
Replying to a query related to delay in payments of MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) works, he said that recently the Central Government has released a massive fund under MNREGA and he expects all pending payments will be cleared in coming up weeks.
Explaining about the use of funds sanctioned by 14th finance commission, Sahu said that the funds have been transferred to the bank account of Panchayat. Under the ‘Hamar Gao Hamar Yojna’, the schemes prepared by Gram Sabha will be forwarded to Janpad Panchayat and after approval from state government, the funds will be utilized for development of various works.