On the eve of 70th Independence Day Chief Minister Harish Rawat greeted the people and paid tribute to martyrs on behalf of the State. While wishing for long life of freedom fighters, the CM also paid homage to those who had sacrificed their life in the public struggle for Statehood.
He said, “Crossing all hurdles our State is on the path of development while also become one of the fast developing States of India. Our per capita income is double than the national average. Our GDP is at 13 per cent with a development rate of 16 per cent in the industrial sector and 12 per cent in the service sector. To make Uttarakhand free from poverty, unemployment and migration we will have to take our GDP 18 per cent by 2018-19. For this agriculture and associated areas development rate should be eight per cent and service sector growth rate should be 20 per cent by 2018-19.
Target is high, road is challenging but we can achieve because I believe in the sense and will power of the public. If Uttarakhand can cope with the destruction wreaked by the June 2013 disaster then nothing is impossible for Uttarakhand. State needs political stability, social and political tolerance and cooperative environment. Come forward forgetting all differences to address common interest of people,” he said.
The CM said that balanced development should be the state’s identity for which the state has taken several initiatives. “We will have to check migration by 2019-20 and create possibility of employment in impossible areas by 2022-23. This year’s budget is crisis budget. With this we have built a road-map to address the issues to achieve our goal. The budget is document of past two years’ initiatives of the government. To implement this budget state got little time but clear-cut road-map will pave the way for coming years.
In social sector we have been giving pension to seven lakh people and are going to increase the pension by Rs 500 for old age pensioners who have crossed the age of 75 years. State has managed to bring down the mother infant mortality rate (MIMR). To promote women entrepreneur in village level state has launched Mukhya Mantri Mahila Satat Ajeevika Yojana through which the state would help 12000 Women self help groups or Mahila Mangal Dal (MMD) this year. For each women SHG bank account will be opened by depositing Rs 5000 cash and for business state government would provide them upto Rs 25,000 cash as seed capital.
State has constituted separate Eco-Tourism Corporation and developing themed parks on birds, butterflies,reptiles and Burans lovers Park. Additionally, the state is also promoting adventure sports including water sports, paragliding, aero sports, skiing mountain biking and trekking with new destinations also being developed. To promote the native culture our local musical instruments are being promoted by the state. Rapid urbanisation is demand of modern India so we have decided to urbanise our 50 per cent city by 2022. In this regard we have increased the number of our local bodies. Among the initiatives in Derhadun, the river front development scheme is also being executed successfully,” opined Rawat.