“Financial inclusion has ensured better participation of women in the financial decisions of the families. There is a need to push this participation of women further through self-help groups,” the prime minister said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today stressed on the positive impact of Budget 2022 on rural development. He was addressing a webinar, the second in a series on the union budget.
The Prime Minister began by reiterating the mantra of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas and Sabka Prayas as the inspiration behind all the policies and actions of the government.
“Our pledges for the Azadi Ka Amrit kaal will be realized only with the efforts of everyone and everyone will be able to make that effort only when every individual, section and region gets the full benefit of development”, he said.
He explained that the budget has given clear road map for achieving the goal of saturation of government development measures and schemes and how basic amenities can reach to the entire population.
“The Budget has made essential allocations for every scheme like PM Awas Yojana, Gramin Sadak Yojana, Jal Jeevan Mission, connectivity of North-East, broadband in villages,” he said, adding, “similarly, (the) vibrant village programme announced in the budget is very important for the border villages.”
Water governance
He also spoke of the government’s target of 4 crore water connections under the jal jeevan mission and appealed to state governments to be vigilant about the quality of the pipelines and water. “One of the key features of this scheme is that there should be a sense of ownership at the village level and ‘water governance’ is strengthened. Keeping all this in mind, we have to take tap water to every household by 2024,” the prime minister said.
The Prime Minister elaborated on the priorities of the government and spoke of the prime minister’s development initiative for North East Region (PM-DevINE) as a step to ensure saturation of basic amenities in the North-East region. Similarly, he said, the Svamitva Scheme is helping demarcate residences and land in villages using new technologies.
“We have to ensure that the dependence of the rural people on the revenue department is minimized.”
Broadband to inclusion
The prime minister pointed out that rural digital connectivity is no longer mere aspiration but has become a necessity. “Broadband will not only provide facilities in the villages but will also create a big pool of skilled youth in the villages”, he said. Broadband, he said, will expand the service sector to increase capabilities in the country. He also emphasised on the need for proper awareness regarding proper use of the broadband capabilities where the work is already completed.
The prime minister underlined the role of woman power as the foundation of rural economy. “Financial inclusion has ensured better participation of women in the financial decisions of the families. There is a need to push this participation of women further through self-help groups,” he added.
In conclusion, the Prime Minister suggested that it will be helpful if the various agencies responsible for rural issues should sit together on regular intervals to ensure synergy and coordination. “More than availability of money, it is the presence of silos and lack of convergence that is the problem,” he said.
