Hazaribag (Jharkhand): Inaugurating a slew of development projects, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday the NDA government has taken several initiatives in Jharkhand in the past four-and-a-half years to uplift all sections of society.
The Hazaribag visit was another occasion to continue the development work, he asserted. “Three medical colleges have been inaugurated in Dumka, Palamu and Hazaribag. The state had just three such colleges so far. Now with the addition of three more, students won’t have to travel far to study medicine. Also, people can avail medical facilities at ease,” he said. Modi also laid the foundation stone of 500-bedded hospitals in Hazaribag, Dumka, Jamshedpur and Palamu.
Referring to the Kanha Dugdha Yojana (milk scheme), which he inaugurated here prior to his speech, Modi said the initiative will improve the nutritional standards of children in government schools. The prime minister also congratulated the farmers on receiving financial assistance to buy smart phones. “The farmers can now get regular updates on climate, learn about modern farming techniques and find out about government initiatives,” he said.
Modi also said that health insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY of the central government has benefitted more than 57,000 people in the state. “Jharkhand witnessed the launch of Ayushman Bharat health scheme last year. Lakhs of families across the country have benefitted from the scheme, including 57,000 people in Jharkhand,” he stated. While hearing experiences from a few beneficiaries of the health scheme, the prime minister advised them not to allow their family members to indulge in any type of intoxication.
Modi also asked the beneficiaries to educate girls, an official release said. “Give the same opportunity to girls as being given to boys in education, and ensure no girl child in the society remains illiterate,” he said. The prime minister asserted that the central government has been taking initiatives to supply clean drinking water to all houses in Jharkhand.
“Health is directly related to cleanliness and sanitation. In the last four-and-a-half years, the Centre has spent thousands of crores (of rupees) to launch 350 projects for supplying clean drinking water. Today, I have laid foundation of 11 such projects to ensure that people receive clean water,” he maintained. The prime minister, who inaugurated a women’s engineering college in Ramgarh, said the institute was the first-of-its-kind in Jharkhand. He also launched a centre of tribal studies at Acharya Vinoba Bhave University here.
The Centre will go a long way to promote tribal culture and traditions across the world, Modi said. Jharkhand has two dozen Eklavya schools, a modern residential school for tribal students, and work was on to set up 70 more, he said. Modi also paid tribute to Vijay Soreng, the CRPF jawan from the state who was killed along with 39 others in the Pulwama terrorist attack last week, and said the Centre will look after the families of the slain personnel. Jharkhand has seen many revolutions over the years and grown from strength to strength, he added.
