Raipur . Chief Minister Vishnudev Sai, while addressing the concluding session of the two-day regional conference on the subject of “Good Governance” in Raipur today, announced the launch of the “Chief Minister Good Governance Fellow Scheme” in the state. Chief Minister Sai said that under this scheme, the Chhattisgarh government in collaboration with IIM Raipur will start a master’s course in Public Policy and Governance for the native students of Chhattisgarh. For this, students will be selected through CAT.
Chief Minister Sai said that in this scheme, along with classes at IIM Raipur, students will also be given practical experience in various departments of Chhattisgarh Government. The state government will bear the entire fee of the course, as well as provide a fixed monthly stipend to the students. This scheme will increase efficiency and transparency in governance as well as provide the youth of the state an opportunity for high level education and practical experience. Its objective is to prepare a generation of professionals in Chhattisgarh who will work in collaboration with the government, NGOs, think tanks and the private sector to improve governance.
The Chief Minister, while warmly welcoming the senior officials, subject experts, intellectuals from across the country in the two-day regional conference, on behalf of the citizens of Chhattisgarh, said that you people have shared the best practices going on in various states of the country with each other. Everyone together has had detailed discussions regarding increasing mutual cooperation and participation in the field of good governance. During these two days, you people must have learned and understood a lot about the efforts being made by the Chhattisgarh government towards establishing good governance.
The Chief Minister said that as you all know, the idea of good governance is at the core of our political ideology. What has been called Ramrajya in our Puranas, we call it good governance. Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah is our motto. Antyodaya and Integral Humanism is our political philosophy. Chief Minister Sai said that former Prime Minister Bharat Ratna late Atal Bihari Vajpayee is our inspiration. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we are striving for maximum participation of Chhattisgarh in the creation of a developed India through good governance. 44 percent of our land is covered with dense forests, hence we have the great responsibility of protecting the environment and biodiversity of India. Along with all this, it is also our primary duty to protect the tribal culture and traditions of the state. Along with the rich mineral wealth, industrial expansion, agricultural expansion in the state, we have also identified the natural and cultural beauty of this place as important resources. We are also looking at good governance as an important resource for the social and economic empowerment of the state.
The Chief Minister said that we have launched our new industry policy, in which the development of tourism has also been encouraged. In tribal areas like Bastar, availability of land for industries is a challenge. In such a situation, the natural and cultural beauty of these areas will become a big economic strength for there. Opportunities for employment and income growth will be created. The standard of living of the people will rise. We are working towards building a big tourism circuit in the state.
The Chief Minister said that our special focus is on tribal areas like Bastar and Surguja. We are developing facilities for tourists at these places as well as basic infrastructure development. The United Nations World Tourism Organization has recently included Dhudmaras village of Kanger Valley of Bastar among the selected 20 villages of the world to be developed as the best tourist village. We are very excited about this. We have also included local processing of forest products and agricultural products as an extremely important component in our strategy for economic development.
The Chief Minister said that the most primary need is to have access to information and knowledge to the common man for the schemes, programs, policies and services made by the government. Along with the establishment of security camps in Naxalism-affected areas, access to all kinds of basic infrastructure, schemes and services of the Central and State Government is being ensured in the interior villages. For this, the state government is running the Niyyad Nella Nar scheme. This is a word from the Gondi language, which means – your good village.
The Chief Minister said that the PM Janman Yojana and Dharti Aaba Janjati Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the development of tribal areas have given us even more strength. Schemes like Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, Jal Jeevan Mission, PM Suryaghar Free Electricity Scheme have also accelerated the efforts being made by the state government towards establishing good governance. The state government has achieved significant achievements in the development of infrastructure in a short span of 11 months, this also includes the participation of sensitive officers like you who understand the needs of Chhattisgarh. I am happy that our proposals are given serious attention by the Central Government and prompt cooperation is provided.
The Chief Minister said that the ultimate goal of good governance is to saturate the life of every citizen with comforts and facilities. In the last 11 months, we have got road projects worth about 31 thousand crore rupees and many important rail projects. Air services have also expanded. A new airport has been inaugurated in Surguja, the number of airports in the state has increased to 04. Just a day before yesterday, the Government of India has given the green signal to start air services from Raipur to Dubai and Singapore.
The Chief Minister said that due to the double engine government in the state, we are moving rapidly towards this goal. In the last 11 months, we have ensured transparency in governance and administration by taking strict action against corruption. Online platforms have been created for services by simplifying the processes in all departments. It has been ensured that the work of the citizens is done within the time limit, they have easy access to the government, complaints are resolved quickly, public participation in development increases, democratic and constitutional institutions are strengthened.
The Chief Minister said that in the last 11 months, we have taken several steps like e-office system, Chief Minister’s Office online portal, Swagatham portal for entry into the ministry, online permission for minerals, home registration through Sugam app, single window system for industry and trade, online layout and building permission, Atal monitoring portal, online sale of wood in the forest department, making it mandatory to purchase government requirements through JAM portal. As part of the efforts being made in this direction, we have formed a new department, the Department of Good Governance and Convergence, immediately after the formation of our government in the state. We are moving ahead with full confidence with the target of increasing the state’s GSDP from Rs 5 lakh crore to Rs 10 lakh crore by the year 2028.
Union Minister of State Dr. Jitendra Singh, while addressing the workshop, said that Chhattisgarh state is rapidly moving towards establishing good governance under the leadership of Chief Minister Vishnudev Sai as well as ensuring public participation in development. He said that Prime Minister Modi has prepared a vision document Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav till 2047. He said that good governance means transparency and accountability. All ministries should coordinate with each other and ensure that the benefits of public welfare schemes reach the eligible beneficiaries while maintaining continuous contact with each other and being oriented towards continuous innovation. Such events increase personal contact and exchange of each other’s culture.
On the concluding day of the programme, Chief Minister Vishnudev Sai and Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh also released the e-book ‘Minimum Government Maximum Governance’ based on good governance.
In the conference, detailed discussions were held on topics related to best practices of good governance, citizen empowerment, functioning of administration and use of various e-platforms to make access of citizen services easy for the general public. The workshop was also addressed by Secretary of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances Department V. Srinivas and Chief Secretary of Chhattisgarh Amitabh Jain. Secretary to the Chief Minister Rahul Bhagat expressed his gratitude.
