Hitting out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on December 26, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu accused the Opposition party of not standing with the people of the State in their hour of need — the devastating aftermath of the monsoon this year.
“The Central government hasn’t given any special relief package for the disaster-hit people of the State. Despite no support from the Centre, the State government is doing best to aid the disaster-affected families and has announced a Special Relief Package of ₹4,500 crore.” he said.
“Not only this, when the proposal to declare a national disaster came in the State Assembly, no BJP MLA came forward in its support. However, the State government is resolved to help the affected by reducing its expenses. Our government has even amended rules in favour of a poor person,” he added.
He was speaking in Shimla’s Theog where he distributed ₹22.81 crore as relief to people affected in the district. The relief is meant to rehabilitate families displaced by the landslides and flooding caused by the heavy rains this year.
Accusing the previous BJP government for the poor financial health of the State, Mr. Sukhu said, “Although the State was dealing with a huge burden of debt due to the poor management of funds by the previous BJP government, the problem of lack of funds would not be allowed to come in the way of the development of the area.”
He added that the government was committed to the welfare of the horticulturists and announced that the apples would only be sold in universal cartons from the next year. “This would ensure that only 20 kg apples are sold in a box. This year, the State government ensured that the orchardists earn maximum profit for their produce by giving them the facility to sell apples at per kilogram rate,” he said.
In another event in Shimla, the Chief Minister said that the Congress government would be successful in bringing the State’s economy back on track by the year 2026 and making Himachal Pradesh the most prosperous State in the country by the year 2032.
He announced that a scheme would be introduced in the upcoming Budget for the economic prosperity of farmers by providing a fixed income based on natural farming.
