Odisha’s 1,342 panchayats to be poverty-free by 2019

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Mar 25:

In a significant development, target has been set to make 1,342 (20 per cent) gram panchayats in Odisha poverty-free by 2019 under Centre’s Mission Antyodaya.

Chairing a high level meeting yesterday, Odisha Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi has asked the officials to identify the gram panchayats, which will be included under the central scheme, by end of March.

Panchayatiraj secretary Deoranjan Kumar Singh proposed the roadmap at the meeting on four sectors such as — growth in agriculture, skill development of youths, opportunity creation in farming and non-farming sectors and successful implementation of various welfare programmes and schemes in grass root level.

Mission Antyodaya will be carried out on the basis of the roadmap prepared by the department, he said.

The work progress of the programme will be reviewed in every three month, sources said.

Earlier, Union Ministry of Rural development had sent a draft proposal to Odisha Panchayatiraj department mentioning details about the Mission seeking the State government’s opinion on the proposal.

The proposed mission will be implemented after getting feedback from all the states.

Notably, the Centre has decided to make 50,000 gram panchayats poverty-free by 2019.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitely while presenting the Union Budget 2017-18 had said that the government will launch a Mission Antyodaya for poverty alleviation in the country.

Focusing to improve the economic condition of people, the Centre will undertake a Mission Antyodaya to bring 1 crore households out of poverty and to make 50,000 gram panchayats poverty-free by 2019, the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhiji, Jaitley had said in his budget speech.