Chief Minister Hemant Soren, during the Niti Ayog meeting with the PM and CMs of different states today reiterated the demand of separate column for tribal population in the Census 2021 data.
“Demand has been kept for years to establish a place for tribals in the census. We have sent a proposal related to the demand for Sarna Adivasi Dharma Code, passed from Jharkhand Legislative Assembly. We believe that the Government of India will consider it sympathetically. Separate columns should be arranged for them in the census as well,” he said.
The CM said, “Often during field visits, we get the opportunity to interact with senior citizens. They often complain about not getting pension benefits and when enquired, concerned officials say that the target has been completed. Can we not benefit the population by giving them a universal pension? The pension amount has not been increased by the Central government since 2007, although the State government has increased it from the State funds. The Central government should consider universalizing the pension.”
Soren further added that the State Government wants to increase the purchasing power of the villagers. For this, special attention is being given to agriculture, social security, health, education and infrastructure development in the rural areas of the State. “The State government is working towards giving agriculture status to lac cultivation and silk. I think India will become a self-reliant country only when we work towards the empowerment of the rural population. It is necessary to focus on increasing the financial resources of the villagers,” he added.
The CM said that Jharkhand is a labour-intensive State. There is a need to consider creating employment opportunities for them.
“The Central government has marked a wage rate of Rs 202, which is lower than other states of the country. At present, the workers of Jharkhand are not able to reap optimum benefits from MGNREGA.
The Central government should increase the minimum wage rate. Also, there is a need to rethink the law made for workers.
In the absence of strong legislation, middlemen and Central government undertakings also ignore the interests of workers. Recently, the workers who went to work for NTPC in Uttarakhand and BRO have faced difficulties due to this,” he said.
Soren said that Jharkhand is also a mineral-intensive State. These issues have been discussed many times between the State and the Centre. But, it is not proving worthwhile. In addition to DMFT, the royalty of mining, the Central government should think about the partnership model of mining operations.
This will help provide opportunities for growth to the residents of Jharkhand, because people here not only have to suffer financially but they also go through mental suffering due to dislocation, which needs to be understood.
The CM said that a State must be financially strong. “We are working on the upcoming budget.
The share given by the Central government to Jharkhand is Rs 1750 crores, but it has been reduced to Rs 1200 crores. Due to this, the State is losing crores. Also, during the Corona period, DVC deducted Rs 2131 crore from the State government’s account. This was done for the first time with any State in the country. Being a labour-intensive State, this fund was necessary for Jharkhand to control the spread of the pandemic,” he said.
The CM said that 50 per cent of the land of Jharkhand is covered with forest and bushes.
It is difficult to get forest clearance for the State government's industries and entrepreneurs for setting up any type of industry, whereas the Central government undertakings easily get forest clearance.
Also, there is difficulty in providing equivalent land instead of the acquired land. If the Central government works towards making it flexible while considering these subjects, then a State like Jharkhand will also be able to establish industries, he said.
On this occasion, Chief Secretary Sukhdev Singh, Secretary Himani Pandey, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Rajiv Arun Ekka and others were present.