Mayawati government charts out its agenda

Lucknow, May 19: Charting out its agenda for the development of the state, the Mayawati government today announced setting-up of two new departments for integrated rural and urban development, beside establishing the Regional Employment Generation Centres as an innovative measure.

The new departments, namely Rural Integrated Development and Urban Integrated Development, to be headed by a Cabinet minister would come into force immediately, Chief Minister Mayawati announced at the first meeting of senior administrative and police officials of the state.

The UP CM , who immediately after taking over, had announced scrapping of the Rs 500 per month unemployment allowance started by the previous government, today made it a point to more than compensate it by setting up Regional Employment Generation Centres, each of which would cover five to six gram sabhas and would generate employment at the local level.

''The priority in the employment would be given to SC, ST, OBC, religious minorities and economically backward from the upper caste,'' Mr Shashank Shekhar Singh, state Cabinet Secretary said at the post-meeting press briefing.

The UP government also decided to rename its most ambitious Ambedkar Gram Yojana as Ambedkar Gram Sabha Development Scheme declaring to make Gram Sabha as the revenue unit of development.

Ms Mayawati directed all the state officials comprising the Chief Secretary, departmental secretaries, zonal IGs and various DIGs, to accord high priority to law and order of the state, take stringent actions agianst criminals and invoke NSA and Gangster Act and other relevent provisions as required. They were also directed to launch various pro-people services at a war footing.

Mr Singh said the purpose of setting up new departments had been aimed at taking into account all the developmental components of rural and urban regions in a systematic manner. Sanitation, potable water, roads, sewerage, rural roads, upkeep of transformers, health, stregthening up of public distribution system and primary education are some of development areas on which the officers have been issued clear directions. As many as 37 schemes are included in the Ambedkar Gram Sabha Development Scheme, which has been a mainstay of the CM even during her earlier three regimes.

Boring of hand pumps, repair of transformers and making availability of potable water in view of the summers should be taken up with a sense of urgency, according to the directives issued to the officials at the meeting here today.

The state officials have been given two months' time to implement the agenda of the government followed by monthly divisional review meetings to be taken by the Chief Minister to ensure the benefits of the schemes are reached to all irrespective of caste and religion. Corruption-free, crime-free and clean administration should be the watch word of BSP government in the state failing which the oficers would be taken to task, the meeting was told in no uncertain terms.

Ms Mayawati also directed the officials to take benefit of Central schemes to the maximum as and when needed and launching all the pro-people schemes on a time-bound basis in all parts of the state.

Stating that the implementation of reservation policies was not adequate in the government jobs, the Chief Minister directed the officials to clear backlog as well as launch a new drive during the next six months. She warned the district officials to cater to the weaker section and farmers in a sympathetic manner and ensure that no person was forced to commmit suicide owing to penury.

In another significant direction, the state officials were advised not to succumb to political inteference, either from the ruling party members or from other political parties while implementing people- welfare schemes in the state. ''The oficial machinery would be given free hand to implement developmental scheme but any laxity in this regard would be dealt with a heavy hand,''she said.

She also said to put a check on the misuse of Central Government's Dalit Act, but instructed to tackle mafia, anti-national elements, Naxalites and terrorist activities in an effective way. Importantly, the new government resolved to adopt reformative approach towards petty criminals and emphasis would be to reform them rather than sending to the jails, which are already overcrowded.

Ms Mayawati, as she did in her earlier regimes, asked all the district officials to spend specified time to listen to public grievinaces and 'Thana Diwas' and 'Tahsil Diwas' to held at regular basis.

She also directed the Election officials to take up preparation of Election Photo Identity Cards (EPICs) as a drive and said she would personally review the progress in this regard.

The Chief Minister made special mention of the need to control crime and directed regular meetings of the senior police officials which would also be folowed up by review by officials of the Chief Minister's secretariat.

UNI