Jammu- Asserting that welfare of poor and vulnerable sections is the top priority of the government, the Union Territory Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha said on Wednesday that the aim of his administration is to build a strong and prosperous rural Jammu and Kashmir.
Sinha made these remarks after transferring installments to the tune of Rs. 149.17 crore directly to the bank accounts of 35,097 beneficiaries under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)-Gramin, at the Civil Secretariat here on Wednesday, an official spokesperson said.
The LG said that the PMAY-G will fulfill beneficiaries’ dream of a ‘Pucca House’ with basic amenities, boost their self-esteem, social status and standard of living.
Highlighting that the welfare of the poor & vulnerable section is the top priority of UT administration, the LG said that PMAY-G benefits genuinely homeless, those living in dilapidated houses and a large number of women & households from vulnerable groups.
“Basic needs assistance will give impetus to rural development and empower the poorest,” he added.
The LG praised the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for bringing welfare schemes like PMAY-G that have transformed people’s lives. He also asserted that the aim of his administration was to build a strong and prosperous rural J&K.
“Despite being a slow starter, J&K has gained momentum in realizing the vision of ‘Housing for all’. Our target is to build more than 2 lakh houses. Special camps have been organized to identify the left out deserving beneficiaries of PMAY,” Sinha said.
“Housing provides stability to poor families and contributes to poverty reduction, and the families who have got their own house are now ready to fulfill other developmental aspirations of their family members,” he added.
The LG maintained that dedicated efforts are being made to fill the gap between policies and implementation.
“Basic needs like electricity, toilet, drinking water, LPG connection and other facilities for the PMAY-G houses are being met through convergence of other government schemes,” he added.
The LG also highlighted the major role of the Rural Development Department and Deputy Commissioners in formulating precise Statistics for effective implementation of welfare schemes.
Chief Secretary Dr Arun Kumar Mehta called for collecting realistic data of left-out eligible beneficiaries of PMAY-G followed by corrective measures to realize the goal of ‘Housing for all’.
He further asked the district administrations to make district-wise compendium of houses being provided under the scheme.
Commissioner/Secretary, Department of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj Mandeep Kaur apprised the LG about the targets of PMAY and Awaas Plus and the achievements made till date.
It was informed that against the target of 2, 00,619 houses, as many as 1, 03,577 have been completed. Further, Block level camps were organized in all districts wherein an exhaustive exercise was conducted to update the permanent waiting list of PMAY-G beneficiaries.
To mark the occasion, 20 PMAY-G beneficiaries were handed over cheques of Rs 50,000 each by the LG.
‘People Expect Quick Action From Admin’
Sinha said that effective handling of complaints and grievances is fundamental to accountability and prompt resolution of public concerns in a timely & cost-effective way.
Earlier interacting with people during the latest edition of “LG’s Mulaqaat”- Live Public Grievance Hearing programme, at the Civil Secretariat, the LG directed the officers to strengthen public confidence and passed on-spot directions to resolve their complaints.
“People want to be heard and expect quick action from the administration. LG’s Mulaqaat has emerged as a people-friendly platform, which enables & values complaints & ensures grievances are handled promptly and accountability is fixed for further improvements,” the LG said.
“Listening to people first is the top priority of the administration. The ease of conversations through LG’s Mulaqaat stimulates different departments to support citizen-centric systems that provide seamless and integrated public services to meet the increasing societal expectations,” he added.
Sinha further said that feedback systems on complaints handling have ensured an equitable, objective, and unbiased process.
“All the departments are working in an efficient, effective, integrated, and coherent manner with increased citizen participation,” he said.
Noting that Deputy Commissioners and SPs are the face of the administration, the LG called upon officials to discharge their responsibilities and serve the common man with utmost sensitivity, besides adhering to the timelines of developmental projects and ensuring close synergy between different government agencies to achieve optimal results on the ground.
Taking serious note of grievances regarding delays in issuance of revenue extracts, the LG directed all the Deputy Commissioners to personally monitor the extension of revenue services.
On the issue of damaged building of Government Middle School, Gadyara, Ramban, the chair was informed by the concerned Deputy Commissioner that the said school has been declared unsafe during the safety audit.
He further informed that the school has been included among the unsafe schools by the Union Ministry for the repair and reconstruction works.
Similarly, an applicant namely Sumair Javed Khan drew the attention of the authorities to the dilapidated condition of the road from Rajouri town to Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University.
The LG assured the applicant that the administration was aware of the issue and necessary action in regard has already been initiated to provide relief to the people at the earliest.
On the issue of functioning of the street lights at Pahalgam raised by an applicant namely Showkat Ahmad from Anantnag, concerned officers briefed the chair on the measures taken to address this issue with alacrity.
During the interaction, most of the randomly selected applicants expressed their gratitude to the LG for prompt redressal of their grievances by the authorities.
On the occasion, the LG directed the DCs and other officials to coordinate with the Science and Technology Department for effective implementation of PM-KUSUM (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan) scheme, and installation of solar pumps and roof top solar panels.
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