Health Minister Banna Gupta on Thursday cleared the air on the speculations about the Government’s plan to do away with registration of property worth Rs 50 lakh or less for a token amount of only Rs 1 for women buyers – a decision taken by the former Raghubar Das-led NDA Government here in 2017 to empower women. He said that the current Government may use the revenue generated through registration for more meaningful purposes.
“We may do away with the stamp-duty-free property registration for women, and use the revenue generated for welfare of more needy groups of the society. We may give that rebate in electricity, water, education and other utility services,” Gupta said while attending a programme at the Ranchi Press Club. The Government, he added, was weighing its options for curtailing unnecessary expenses and filling the Government’s “empty” coffers without compromising with the important welfare schemes.
In June 2017, the state government decided to waive off the 7 per cent charges – 4 per cent stamp duty and 3 per cent court fee – on properties registered on the name of women. The decision was floated as an initiative to empower women in households and encourage families to register properties on the names of their women members. The initiative, though appreciated by commoners, had led to loss to the exchequer.
Finance Minister Rameshwar Oraon had earlier said that the State’s coffers were empty and the Government may discontinue “useless” schemes in order to boost the exchequer. His statement came days after Chief Minister Hemant Soren accused the former Government of wasting the State exchequer’s money extravagantly.
Gupta on Thursday also said that the Government is committed in providing a safe work environment for the fourth pillar of democracy – the media. He said that he will speak to the Chief Minister about providing insurance facility to scribes and ensuring safety for them while they visit unrest-hit places during the course of their work.
The Congress Minister has been among the most vocal members of the recently-expanded Cabinet.
Earlier this week, he asked doctors, hospital authorities and medicine shop owners to not be afraid of officials and directly inform the Minister over WhatsApp if any official demands bribe. On Thursday, he also visited Ranchi Institute of Neuro-Psychiatry and Allied Sciences (RINPAS) to review the state of affairs in the premier mental health facility.
Gupta pointed out that some patients at RINPAS were staying in the institute despite not needing mental health treatment, while many inmates at the tertiary care centre were forced to stay at the facility as their families refused to accept them. “We will inspect RINPAS and see what we can do to improve the infrastructure. I want to serve the people of Jharkhand, and I do not mind even cleaning the filth of patients as the chief of the health ministry,” he said.
The first-time Minister has been frequenting the various Government-run health facilities in the State since taking charge. The State Cabinet recently announced that it would bear the treatment cost of up to Rs.5 lakh for poor and middleclass patients suffering from severe ailments. The decision, he said, was aimed at supporting the families that cannot afford the exorbitant cost of medical treatments.