‘Implement welfare schemes ensuring quality’

Varanasi: Deputy chief minister, Keshav Prasad Maurya, on Thursday, reviewed the progress of the schemes being run by the Rural Development department in Varanasi and Vindhyachal divisions. Interacting with the area panchayat heads and block development officers of both the divisions, he laid special emphasis on the implementation of public welfare schemes adhering to quality and deadline as per the intentions of the government.
He said that the work of MGNREGA should be ensured under any circumstances. The gram pradhans, gram vikas adhikari and gram panchayat adhikari should jointly review progress of the work regularly. “Now, we should talk about smart villages, so that development of the village can be done with the schemes of the government on priority. Corruption-free governance and taking development to the last person is the aim of the government,” he said.
Maurya said that everyone should take care that water is always available in Amrit Sarovar and asked to identify 100 backward blocks deprived of development in the state, and the government will pay full attention to them. Regarding the problem of paucity of funds in small gram sabhas, the CDOs and BDOs were asked to suggest measures to ensure their development.
During an interaction with the Kshetra Panchayat heads, chiefs of Sonbhadra panchayat raised the points of increasing the budget, network problem and establishment of girls’ schools. The Duddhi block chief spoke about non-cooperation by the block employees. The Pahadi block chief of Mirzapur said that he did not get the cooperation of the secretary and the block chiefs did not get due respect while the chief of Barhani block raised the issue of account operations. The block head of Revatipur suggested organizing a workshop regarding the rights and functions of the block heads.
The deputy CM directed to deduct one day’s salary of the employees of the block for their absence in the meeting. He directed the officials that the encroachments on the reservoirs should be removed and trees should be planted and pastures, barns, ramps for walking on the vacant land should be developed. He also asked the village development/panchayat officers to sit for two hours in the Gram Panchayat and ensure his presence through WhatsApp.
On the allegation made by Manihari block chief of Ghazipur district that the block development officer did not do any work for the last one and a half years, the deputy CM ordered the CDO of Ghazipur to relieve the concerned BDO. He also directed to display development plans clearly on the village secretariat along with the numbers of the concerned officers. He praised the plan by the Araziline block chief to raise funds with the help of the people and build houses for the neglected people by the name of Apna Ghar.
The meeting was also attended by the UP minister Ravindra Jaiswal, district panchayat president, Poonam Maurya, Mayor Ashok Tiwari, Cantt MLA Saurabh Srivastava, Pindra MLA Awadhesh Singh, Ajgara MLA Tribhuvan Ram, Rohania MLA Sunil Patel, MLC Hansraj Vishwakarma, district magistrate S Rajalingam, and chief development officer Himanshu Nagpal.