Chief Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan has asked divisional commissioners and district collectors to improve arrangements of hospitals in their respective districts and ensure availability of doctors and paramedical staff there. He said that skill development is among the State Government’s top priorities since this is a forceful medium for large number of employment to unemployed youths of the rural areas. The Chief Minister while describing any laxity in the implementation of MNREGA and Bundelkhand Package as intolerable, said that pending cases of wages under MNREGA must be redressed within next two months. The Chief Minister said this at the two-day commissioner-collectors conference after discussions on public health, family welfare, woman and child development, Panchayat and rural development and skill development in Madhya Pradesh.Public Health & Family Welfare Minister Shri Narottam Mishra, Panchayat & Rural Development Minister Shri Gopal Bhargava, Higher Education & Technical Education Minister Shri Laxmikant Sharma, Tribal Welfare Minister Kunwar Vijay Shah, Minister of State Shri Mahendra Hardia, Minister of State for Woman and Child Development (independent charge) Smt. Ranjana Baghel and Minister of State for Panchayat and Rural Development Shri Dev Singh Sayyam also presented their suggestions in this session.
The Chief Minister gave instructions to identify the hospitals situated in the districts bordering other states and districts of other states are closer to them for medical treatment. The Chief Minister asked to provide benefit of government’s health schemes in the border districts’ people too, undergoing treatment there.
The conference was informed that the Madhya Pradesh model of financial inclusions for payment of MNREGA wages will be implemented from Hoshangabad on August 15. Under the scheme, bank account facility will be made available to labourers within a radius of five kilometres. Similarly, lavatory arrangements will be made in all the rural area schools in Madhya Pradesh by September 30. Training will get underway in all the 113 skill development centres in the state from September 17.
Chief Minister Shri Chouhan while emphasising the need to implement PCP&DT Act firmly, said special strategy should be chalked out to reduce difference in sex ratio in the districts, which have major difference in sex ratio. He also instructed to ensure availability of medicines and implement the family welfare programme on priority basis against the fixed target like last year. The Chief Minister said that by keeping the Bal Hriday Upchar Yojna in mission mode, collectors should take personal interest in it and give attention to children’s treatment. The Chief Minister congratulated collectors of Guna, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Khargone and Indore districts for better work in health sector.
Getting rid of malnutrition at any cost is our target
The Chief Minister while underlining the importance of Atal Bal Arogya Mission said that our target is to get rid of malnutrition in the state at every cost. He called for special attention to opening Anganwadi centres timely and distribution of better nutritional diet. He said that whenever ministers and collectors go on tour, they must undertake inspections of Anganwadi centres. He called for seeking cooperation from the industrial houses interested in social sector works for construction and running of Anganwadis. Shri Chouhan lauded collectors of Chhindwara, Umaria and Jabalpur for better implementation and achievements in the schemes of Woman and Child Development Department.
The Chief Minister said that while keeping in view proper implementation of MANREGA, timely payment to labourers should also be ensured. He instructed to undertake immediate investigation into complaints regarding the scheme’s implementation and punish the erring person howsoever influential he may be. He also instructed for constant monitoring and better implementation of Midday Meal scheme, Indira Awas Yojna and Mukhyamantri Grameen Awas Mission. The Chief Minister said that the process of merging Panchayat secretaries in district cadre should be completed by August 31. He also called for study of Andhra Model for empowering women’s self-help groups so that women’s empowerment can be given the dimension of a mass movement.
The Chief Minister said that the State Government has decided to open Skill Development Centres with a view to ensuring skill development of youths connected with traditional trades in the rural areas. He said that decisions regarding providing 50 percent jobs to local people in the industries to be set up in districts and opening of Skill Development Centres will help youths get employment.
In the first session of the conference, presentations were made on school education, SC, ST welfare, backward class and minorities welfare, public health, woman & child development, Panchayat & rural development and skill development. Ministers, divisional commissioners and district collectors present on the occasion made the conference aware of their difficulties and putforth their suggestions.