Gandhinagar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi termed himself as the first labourer of the country who as its ‘chowkidar’ had thwarted middlemen from cornering benefits meant for the poor. “Be warned that this lot of ‘middlemen’ pushed to the sidelines are now banding together with a “Modi hatao” campaign. I want to root out terrorism. They want to root me out”, he added.
The Prime Minister was addressing a congregation of unorganized labourers in Ahmedabad on the second day of his two day visit to his home state on Tuesday. The address marked the nationwide launch of the “’Pradhanmantri ShramMaan-Dhan Yojana”, a pension scheme for workers in the unorganized sector.
Official sources said that over 42 crore labourers in the unorganized sector including street vendors, agricultural and landless labourers, construction workers and domestic workers would be eligible to join the scheme and earn a minimum pension of Rs 3000 on attaining the age of sixty years. Under the scheme which was announced in the vote on account for the next financial year, the beneficiary will have to contribute between Rs 55 to Rs 200 per month and the Centre shall make available a matching grant.
Modi said that he had personally experienced poverty. “Your constant worry is what happens to you in your old age. For rulers of the past “garibi hatao” was merely a slogan but for me it is a serious matter. It is for the first time since independence that this government is implementing schemes to benefit the poor. I am implementing schemes that will look after you when even your own may not”, he added.
Later participating at a “Pran-Pratistha ceremony” of Goddess Annapurna temple built by Leuva Patels at Ahmedabad, Modi decried the present trend of the government taking over the responsibilities of social welfare activities. He said in the past social organizations initiated the welfare schemes including setting up of hostels, “annasatra” where the poor were fed.
“But the governments in the by-gone years slowly started taking over the social responsibilities as if it is their job and also allow the trend to develop where the people have started questioning the government for not doing enough in the social sector,” Modi said. “We have reversed the trend. Our attempt is that the state should do the administrative work, and society should be empowered so that it can carry out such social works beneficial for the people at large,” he said.
Advising the trustees of the Annapurna temple to connect religious activities with social programmes, Modi suggested distributing saplings with the devotees as part of “prasad” to save environment by growing more trees and giving five saplings of the woods used for building constructions to the devotees with new-born girl child.
“By the time they attain 20 years of age, the trees can be sold and the proceeds will be enough for meeting their marriage expenses and the government will save millions against importing such woods,” Modi said.
