LUCKNOW: In what potentially marks ruling BJP’s yet another concerted bid to fortify its foothold in the rural precincts of UP, the Yogi Adityanath government has managed to wheel in internet connectivity in around 70% of the secretariats constructed in over 58,000 gram panchayats of the state.
The state government is also on the verge of completing the training of panchayat assistants and deploying them in each of these gram panchayat secretariats for delivering online services to the rural masses — a move which could lend a decisive impetus to various ground level operations requisite for smooth governance at the village level.
Additional chief secretary (rural development and panchayati raj), Manoj Kumar Singh affirmed that computer and internet linkages have already been completed in around 40,000 panchayat bhawans (secretariats). Likewise, he said, as many as 56,000 panchayat sahayaks have been trained for providing online training services to the people.
“The idea is to strengthen the gram panchayats and subsequent ground level delivery of services in the rural areas,” he told TOI on Tuesday. Singh said that the state government is closely monitoring works for strengthening the gram panchayats. This comes close on the heels of CM Yogi’s call for firming up the idea of ‘Gram Swaraj’, an umbrella scheme of the Union ministry of panchayati raj launched on April 24, 2018 to develop and strengthen the panchayati raj system in rural areas.
The strategy, experts said, is being considered vital by the BJP which seeks to draw its political strength from the rural areas in the run up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The idea had worked handsomely for the saffron dispensation in the 2022 assembly election — less than a year after the BJP won 66 out of 75 zila panchayat chairman seats in the rural local bodies elections held last year.
Experts said that after forming the government for the second consecutive term, the BJP presumably seeks to leave a profound and deeper imprint in rural areas, which are ostensibly crucial for a larger political objectivity. CM Yogi’s recent announcement of constructing open gymnasiums in 100 panchayats and rejuvenating water bodies under the ‘Amrit Sarovar Yojana’ too are part of the government’s larger bid to reinforce its presence in rural hinterlands which are equally eyed by the opposition parties, especially the Samajwadi Party and BSP.
“There is ample room for development in rural areas which have largely remained unserved over the years,” said Prof SK Dwivedi, former head of the political science department in Lucknow University. He asserted that the scheme of things benefits the ruling BJP politically as well as economically. Prof Dwivedi termed it as a typical case of “political modernisation” that aims to benefit rural areas.
He said that the rural mindset happens to be relatively “more stable” (in comparison to the urban folks) and acknowledges the steps taken by the government for its elevation. Experts said that the BJP has been gaining regular political advantage by working on the rural sector since its gigantic emergence since 2014 Lok Sabha elections under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi.
