Flaunt achievements on social media, PM tells his ministers

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday gave a pep talk to ministers of state with independent charge, exhorting them to work with an agenda and highlight achievements through social media and other platforms.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday gave a pep talk to ministers of state with independent charge, exhorting them to work with an agenda and highlight achievements through social media and other platforms.

It was an exercise to review several key ministries such as power, coal, finance, petroleum, environment, tourism and commerce which function under junior ministers having independent charge, without a cabinet minister, sources said.

Modi sought a detailed list of achievements by these ministries ahead of the BJP’s national executive meeting in Bangalore this weekend.

“He asked us to submit a list of key decisions that our ministry has taken.

With BJP leaders from across the country meeting in Bangalore, the government is keen to inform them about changes we have brought,” a minister said about the meeting where BJP chief Amit Shah and human resource development minister Smriti Irani were also present.

The report card assumes significance at a time the RSS, the ruling BJP’s ideological mentor, called for facts to blunt the Opposition’s barbs targeting the Modi government over its alleged failures in the first year since it came to power last May.

Modi asked the ministers at the meeting, which last almost two hours, to seek feedback from the people on government policies and maintain strict work transparency.

He insisted people’s welfare should be paramount when a policy is drafted and there should be a proper mechanism to receive feedback on the initiatives.

The Prime Minister sought to know initiatives they had planned to surmount challenges they might be facing.