Jharkhand Governor Ramesh Bais on Wednesday said the state government is striving to uplift the marginalised sections of the society and giving special attention to strengthen the irrigation system.
Addressing the 73rd Republic Day ceremony after unfurling the tricolour at Morhabadi Ground here, the governor said in the Kharif season 2021, irrigation facilities have been made available on 4.4 lakh hectares of land through major, medium and minor irrigation schemes.
Under the Swarnarekha multipurpose project, the work of providing water to fields through pipelines will be started soon to give irrigation benefits to the farmers from the main canals through dams and barrages, Bais said.
Mega Lift Irrigation Projects have been envisaged with the objective of minimising the possible displacement. Under this, the Son-Kanhar pipeline scheme is being constructed in Garhwa.
Bais said the government has also approved the Masalia-Raneshwar Mega Lift Scheme for providing irrigation facilities to Masaliya and Raneshwar blocks of Dumka district.
Besides, he said, the administration is committed to provide better employment opportunities to the youth of the state.
The governor said in order to attract industrial investment to the state and encourage the established units, the government has implemented Jharkhand Industrial Investment and Promotion Policy-2021.
To get investment, special attention is being paid to food processing, renewable energy, logistics, mineral and textile industries, Bais said.
There is also a plan to set up a World Trade Center in Ranchi at Rs 48 crore to promote exports from the state, he said.
He said the government is working for providing clean drinking water to rural areas under the Jal Jeevan Mission scheme and during the last two years, it has approved 60,763 schemes at a total cost of Rs 15,142 crore.
In order to ensure cleanliness, more than 7.77 lakh individual toilets have been constructed at the village level for families separated from joint families or families that are left out for some reason, the governor said.
“A large population of the state does not have houses of its own, which is certainly a matter of concern. That’s why our government has kept it on top priority,” he said.
About 8,000 new houses have been approved under Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar Awas Yojana and about 17,500 houses have been completed under this scheme.
“Our government has sanctioned about 7.5 lakh houses under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Rural. Till now, the construction work of more than 5 lakh houses has been completed,” Bais said.
For the welfare of women, under Phoolo Jhano Ashirwad Yojna, 14,000 women have got interest free loans of Rs 10,000 each to start a dignified life rather than selling liquor, he said.
To make women of the state financially strong, 62 products such as mustard oil, soap, honey and spices prepared by Sakhi Mandals (self-help groups) are being sold under “Palash” brand and about 2 lakh rural women are getting benefit from this.
So far, 159 Palash Marts have been established in various districts and blocks of the state.
A new tourism policy, 2021 has been implemented by the state government to recognise Jharkhand as a world-class tourist destination, Bais said.