After PM leaves, the complaints start pouring in

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday visited Haligaon village in Kamrup district to see the implementation of a centrally-sponsored project, but moments after he left locals said they were not sure the benefits of many projects would reach them.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday visited Haligaon village in Kamrup district to see the implementation of a centrally-sponsored project, but moments after he left locals said they were not sure the benefits of many projects would reach them.

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The PM saw execution of the multi-sectoral development programme in the minority-dominated village. The district administration, which spruced up the roads ahead of the PM’s visit, was able to show houses allotted under the Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) to seven beneficiaries of 161 families, a majority of them in the BPL category.

After the PM’s visit, Rabana Bibi, 68, a widow, alleged that middlemen

demanded R5,000 for a house under IAY. Sahabuddin Ahmed, another villager, said: “... I have doubts that even after his visit, people will remain deprived of all good government schemes.”

Local MLA Kamala Kalita, an independent, said: “I told the PM about poor functioning of the district administration in implementation of rural development scheme.”