Dattatraya pats ‘e-governance’ initiatives of Khattar govt

Haryana governor Bandaru Dattatraya on Tuesday informed the Vidhan Sabha that the Manohar Lal Khattar-led government has removed near 37 lakh “fake or ineligible beneficiaries” and saved ₹1,182 crore annually as the administration “embraced e-governance” in pursuit of Antyodaya (welfare of the people in the bottom of the pyramid) to minimise human intervention in the delivery of services.
Addressing the fifth and the last Budget session of the 14th Haryana assembly, the governor described the e-governance initiatives as “bold steps of good governance” creating a brighter picture of Haryana and its citizens.
Acknowledging the “toil of our farmers” who fill the country’s granaries and “our sportspersons”, who elevate the esteem of the nation after triumphing in international competitions, he said Haryana truly embodies the spirit of “Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jai Vigyan!”.
The governor said “my government” has given cash prizes of over ₹224 crore to players in four years and so far, 369 dependents of martyred soldiers from defence and paramilitary forces have been given jobs, while ex-gratia amount for causality of defence and central paramilitary personnel has been increased to ₹50 lakh.
“The state government deeply values the hard work of farmers and is steadfastly dedicated to their welfare,” said Dattatraya in his 46-minute long speech in Hindi.
According to the governor, to ensure direct transfer of benefits from various schemes to the beneficiaries, the state government introduced Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
“And to date, ₹74,680 crore have been disbursed through this portal, leading to the removal of 36.75 lakh fake or ineligible beneficiaries and resulting in a saving of ₹1,182.23 crore annually,” said Dattatraya, adding that in pursuit of Antyodaya, the administration has embraced e-governance, minimising human intervention in the delivery of services.
The governor said that leveraging technology, the state government has made government services readily available by empowering individuals and streamlining processes.
“These bold steps of good governance are creating a brighter picture of Haryana and its citizens,” the governor added, pointing out that in his opinion, good governance simply means making the daily lives of the common people easier.
He said the common man should get the benefits of government services and programmes at the doorsteps without having to run around government offices for his rights.
“…he should not have to beg anyone, this is good governance,” he said, highlighting how the government has gone beyond the individual identity card ‘Aadhaar’ and made a system of identification of the family in the form of Parivar Pehchan Patra (PPP), making it a medium to deliver benefits of government schemes to every family.
He said so far, 2.85 crore members of about 71.42 lakh families have been registered on PPP.
‘Govt deeply values
hard work of farmers’
The Haryana governor said the state government not only deeply values the hard work of farmers but is also steadfastly dedicated to their welfare.
He said under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana, ₹4,158 crore has been directly deposited into the accounts of 20 lakh farmers of Haryana in last four years.
The state government, he said, has set a unique example by purchasing 14 crops at minimum support price (MSP). “A sum of ₹90,000 crore has been directly deposited into the accounts of farmers registered on the ‘Meri Fasal Mera Byora’ portal and ₹836 crore has been deposited into the bank accounts of Bajra producing farmers under the Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana,” said Dattatraya, adding under the Prime Minister Crop Insurance Scheme, claims worth about ₹8,178 crore have been given to 32 lakh farmers.
“During my government’s tenure, around ₹1,846 crore was disbursed as compensation to farmers for crop damage due to natural disasters,” he said, expressing confidence that Haryana will continue its vibrant journey of progress and consistently set new benchmarks in development.
“The responsibility of realising hopes (of people of Haryana) rest on the shoulders of each member of this House,” he said, stating that Haryana’s strong presence is visible on the national canvas.
The governor said under the Ayushman Bharat- ‘Chirayu’ scheme (free treatment of families with ₹1.80 lakh annual income), over one crore cards have been made and claims of ₹1,247 crore paid for the treatment of about 10 lakh patients.
He said under the ‘Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana’, free ration is being provided to near 45 lakh families in the state, while 12 lakh free cooking gas connections have been provided to poor families.
“My government, in the interest of farmers, does not acquire land for government projects. Instead, we only take land from farmers who are willing to sell it voluntarily,” he said.