According to officials, the Uttar Pradesh chief minister has already started discussions with the top bureaucracy, including chief secretary Durga Shanker Mishra, on how to implement the promised welfare schemes.
As the Yogi Adityanath government 2.0 is set to assume office early next week, all eyes are on a roadmap to implement the promises in the election manifesto.
According to officials, the Uttar Pradesh chief minister has already started discussions with the top bureaucracy, including chief secretary Durga Shanker Mishra, on how to implement the promised welfare schemes.
In one of the main pre-poll promises, the party has promised to provide two free domestic LPG cylinders on the occasion of Holi and Diwali twice a year to all the beneficiaries of the Ujjwala scheme, which is to be fulfilled on priority basis. An official said that since Holi is only a few days away, the chief secretary met senior officials. Indian Oil Corporation To discuss the issues related to distribution of free domestic LPG cylinders. There are 1 crore Ujjwala beneficiaries in the state and officials estimate that around Rs 1,000 crore will be spent on the scheme.
Free electricity to farmers for irrigation (tube wells) is another promise for which the government is working overtime and a proposal on this is expected to be tabled in the first cabinet meeting. Free electricity is already being provided for irrigation in five states of the country – Punjab, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. UP will become the sixth state to provide free electricity for irrigation.
As per the data, the total subscriber base of Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation (UPPCL) is 3.06 crore, out of which about 13.33 lakh (4%) are agriculture consumers. The state government currently pays a subsidy of about Rs 11,000 crore per year to UPPCL for providing subsidized power for irrigation. The government will have to spend an additional subsidy of Rs 2,000 crore every year to provide free electricity to farmers.
Shailendra Dubey, former chief engineer of UPPCL and president of All India Power Engineers Federation, says: “All these states (which provide subsidized power for irrigation) have a separate feeder for agriculture (tubewell). In Uttar Pradesh, since there is no such separation, farmers can use free electricity for other purposes as well, which increases the cost of the scheme.
“We are looking forward to allocations for these schemes in the next budget,” the official quoted above said, adding that the state’s finances are not in the pink of health. according to reserve Bank of IndiaAccording to the U.S. report, the total debt of UP as on March 21 was ₹6 lakh crore, which was 35% of its Gross State Domestic Product. Apart from the pre-poll promises, the state government is also working on finding a permanent solution to the stray cattle problem, especially in the wake of the Prime Minister. Narendra ModiVoters were promised during the election campaign that the problem has been resolved and the result will be declared after the declaration.
Another official said, “The challenge of dealing with stray animals is huge, as they are not only destroying standing crops in farmers’ fields and causing havoc on roads, but also causing huge economic losses.” In view of the slowdown in the meat industry of the State, there will be a timely review of the cow slaughter ban in force in the State.