Himachal Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Saturday said he did not favour elections to the students bodies to maintain discipline in the campus and to curtail unwanted violence. Speaking at the sidelines after presiding over the 45th foundation day of National Students Union of India (NSUI) at Himachal Pradesh University here, he said he was in favour of freedom of students but not at the cost of violence.
He also warned the teachers to abstain from student’s politics and said that they should concentrate on building faith and an environment of peace in the campus.
Asked about the the allegation of leader of Opposition Prem Kumar Dhumal regarding the step-motherly treatment to farmers of the State, the Chief Minister said that it was the BJP which ignored the interests of the farmers. The State Government introduced many schemes including ‘Mukhya Mantri Khet Sanrakshan Yojna’, under which the farmers would be provided 60 per cent assistance for fencing their farms from the wild life. For the welfare of the farming community the Government had almost doubled the subsidy on mechanical tools and pesticides.
“Our Government has decided to provide 50 per cent subsidy for construction of bore wells, small and medium lift irrigation schemes and pumping machinery for increasing irrigational potential and 80 per cent subsidy would be provided to farmers under Rajeev Gandhi Micro-Irrigation scheme’’, he said.