Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday inaugurated the Matrubhoomi Yojana, currently meant for villages, and said it would soon be introduced in cities as well.
The scheme aims to help people working in cities or abroad to “reconnect” with their villages and donate money for infrastructure development projects, if they so wish.
“Our government has currently implemented this scheme in the rural areas. We will implement the Matrubhoomi scheme in the urban areas as well,” the chief minister said.
“This will serve two purposes: first, individuals will be able to reconnect with their roots, and second, they will be able to contribute towards their motherland,” he added.
“Mother and motherland are greater than heaven. There can be no comparison between them. Therefore, everyone should be given the chance to participate in the Matrubhoomi Yojana,” he said.
In November 2021, the Uttar Pradesh cabinet had approved the proposal for the implementation of the Matrubhoomi Yojana to facilitate individuals or private institutions to contribute to the development of any village.
According to officials, a large number of people from the rural background now working in cities or abroad want to contribute to the development of their village and they needed a systematic platform for this. If any such person or private institution wants to contribute to development works in any village panchayat and is willing to bear 60% of the cost, the remaining 40% and land will be arranged by the state government under the scheme, according to an official press release.
“Each person has a bond with their motherland. We must encourage this bond and instil faith in their hearts. Earlier, people had doubts about misappropriation of funds in the state government’s budget,” the chief minister said, adding, now every single penny contributed will be accounted for.
{{/usCountry}}“Each person has a bond with their motherland. We must encourage this bond and instil faith in their hearts. Earlier, people had doubts about misappropriation of funds in the state government’s budget,” the chief minister said, adding, now every single penny contributed will be accounted for.
{{/usCountry}}“The panchayati raj department should develop a mechanism through which the person contributing money can be given an account of every single penny,” he said.
AWARDS FOR VILLAGE PANCHAYATS
The chief minister also distributed awards to 370 gram (village) panchayats for their outstanding work under the Mukhyamantri Panchayat Protsahan Puraskar Yojana on Friday.
Additionally, under the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan scheme, 3,145 gram panchayat secretaries were provided with laptops.
The first-ranked panchayats received ₹11 lakh each, the second-ranked ones ₹9 lakh each, the third-ranked ₹6 lakh each, the fourth ₹4 lakh each and the fifth got ₹2 lakh each.
SMART CITIES
Asserting that 10 municipal corporations are being developed as Smart Cities in Uttar Pradesh with the inspiration of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Yogi Adityanath said, “Additionally, our government is developing seven municipal corporations as ‘Smart Municipal Corporations’ under the State Smart City programme.”
His government was helping gram (village) panchayats become “smart” through various initiatives such as gram sachivalaya, optical fibre, sanitation facilities, LED streetlights, good roads, computer operators, and BC (banking correspondent) Sakhi, the chief minister said.
“If our villages become smart, they can also progress towards self-reliance,” he said.
He also said panchayats should make efforts to be self-reliant by augmenting their resources.
“First, there should be competition between villages, and further, we will organise a cleanliness competition between villages and cities,” he added.
Adityanath further asserted that the distribution of laptops to village secretaries would make panchayats go digital.
CM YOGI ADITYANATH INTERACTS WITH NRIs KEEN TO PLAY ROLE IN SCHEME
During the programme, the chief minister also interacted with NRIs (Non-Resident Indians) associated with the Matrubhoomi Yojana. He spoke to Sanjeev Rajoura, who has been living in California for 21 years and is originally from Bulandshahr.
Rajoura expressed his desire to be a part of the Matrubhoomi scheme and contribute to its implementation.
“People living abroad believe that by cooperating with the Yogi government, their money will be invested in the right place, leading to the development of their villages,” he said.
Vivek Chaudhary, who has been living in California for 23 years and is originally from Modi Nagar, participated in the programme through the virtual medium. During the interaction, he expressed his enthusiasm to be associated with the government’s scheme and mentioned that it is a great opportunity for migrants to contribute to their homeland. He also expressed his desire to invest in health ATMs, education, and other areas.
Deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, finance and parliamentary affairs minister Suresh Khanna, minister of state for rural development and comprehensive rural development and rural engineering Vijay Laxmi Gautam, and chief secretary Durga Shankar Mishra were present during the programme.