Raipur: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Bhupesh Bhaghel lashed out at the Central government stating the Centre creates hurdles step by step which affected the development of the state. He made the statement on Wednesday as the state government began the purchasing of paddy procurement since Centre was reluctant to procure boiled rice from the state.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, Chhattisgarh CM blamed the centre for not providing the jute bags although he has written to the Centre seeking for the same before proceeding with the purchasing of paddy.
Last year also the state was suffering from a shortage of bags due to covid induced lockdown, however, the state government had purchased 92 lakh metric tonnes of paddy by collecting bags from the farmers and the merchants. Increasing the target, the state government has decided to buy one crore metric tonnes of paddy this year.
The centre's decision not to buy boiled rice is a hurdle in the state development and trouble for the farmers. "If the Food Corporation of India has informed us earlier then the farmers could have not sown such variety." he added.
However, from the next year, the state government will request farmers not to sow boiled rice following the centre's objections.
The Bhupesh Bhaghel will complete three years of his governance in the state on December 17, following which the Chhattisgarh CM highlighted the developments and the steps taken by his government in the state including waiving farmers loans, buying paddy at Rs 2500 per quintal, giving a hike in input subsidy to the farmers at Rs 9000 per acre and declared support price for Ragi which brought a smile on the face of farmers and enlightened the market.
Adding further, the Congress leader said establishing Rural Industrial Park in Chhattisgarh was the biggest challenge under which the goods needed by city traders should be produced in the village. The city should be a trading zone, while the village should be the productive zone. "We have to work on both production and trading. This is a big challenge. If we succeed in this, then Bapu's dream of Suraj village will come true. This will prove to be a positive and strong step in regaining the old glory of India,"
Meanwhile, Bhaghel said the promises to implement the Chhattisgarh development model like buying paddy at Rs 2500 per quintal and providing 40 percent reservation to women will give the party an upper hand in Uttar Pradesh elections. .
"Animals are roaming free in Uttar Pradesh and people are unable to save their crops which lead to a conflict among the farmers. To solve the issue Chhattisgarh model of the 'Gothan program' will be implemented," he added.
Speaking over the fear of the spread of new covid variant originated in South Africa, the Congress leader said they have been demanding the Centre to ban the international flights to combat the situation. He added the first variant in the state was reported from a person who had a travel history to the UK, while the second variant reported in the state came from Nagpur an adjacent city to the state. These variants could have been stopped then by imposing restrictions on international flights and putting people in quarantine.
The childrens' education has already been hampered due to previous variants of coronavirus that's why the school and market have been kept open. However, we are monitoring the situation. "We should follow all precautionary measures advised by the experts to combat the new variant," said the Chhattisgarh CM.
