news details |
|
|
| Improve agriculture to tackle agrarian crisis: PM | | |
New Delhi, Oct 16 Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today called
for improving agricultural practices to effectively deal with
agrarian crisis being faced in many parts of the country
and said bridging the developmental gap between urban and rural
areas is a priority for the UPA government.
Inaugurating the National Conference of Project Directors of
District Rural Development Authorities here, Dr Singh said that till
the focus was on the economics of agriculutre, the country couldnot
move ahead.
Expressing concern over the incidents of farmers suicides in
various parts of the country, the Prime Minister said that the
government schemes alone couldnot alleviate their sufferings. It
could only provide social safety net while to prevent them
conditions in which agriculture is practiced needed to be changed,
he said. Dr Singh urged DRDAs to focus on the agriculture by drawing up
district-wise plan on it.
''Our next big growth story could be rural India. There is a
conjecture of circumstances, including the high growth rate of our
economy, which holds great potential for rural India. We need
relevant policy intervention to sustain this process. This is a
national priority for us. We must bridge the developmental gap
between urban and rural areas. We need to collectively ensure that
rural India participates in the new growth process. In this national
endeavour you have a vital and positive role to play,'' Dr Singh
told Project Directors of DRDAs.
Terming the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act as a
''programme for societal transformation', Dr Singh lamented the
delays by some states in putting effective administrative
arrangements in place resulting in slow implementation of NREGA.
Nearly 88 lakh people are working in over 242,000 development works
under the programme which provide effective safety net to the
poorest.
However, the Prime Minister stressed the need for effective
watchdogs from society like Panchyats and civil society
organisation. He urged NGOs and citizens groups to use instruments
like Right to Information Act to increase accountability and
transparency under NREGA.
He asked the project directors to go beyond the programmes being
directly implemented by the ministry and map human resources and
skills in each district. District level Rural Employment Reports
capturing the wage employment created under NREGA, Swaranjayuanti
Gram Swarojgar Yojna and other development interventions in the
district on an annual basis should be developed as a public document.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
