THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Marking a major milestone in the state’s history, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday declared Kerala free of extreme poverty — making it the first state in the country to achieve the status.
Earlier in the day, the chief minister made the formal announcement in a special assembly session convened on the occasion of ‘Kerala Piravi’. The Opposition UDF, which boycotted the special session, termed the declaration a mere eyewash.
The CM made the public declaration at a star-studded event attended by actor Mammootty and cabinet members, at Central Stadium in the state capital. Listing out the achievements of the state government, Pinarayi termed it the rise of a ‘Nava Keralam’ and the ‘real Kerala story’.
Pinarayi said the survivors of the Wayanad landslides will get new houses by next January. Stating that Kerala’s development had gone cold when he took office in 2016, the CM cited the hike in welfare pensions as one of the key achievements of the LDF government. Accusing the Union government of witholding the funds following the Wayanad landslides, he said the state has eradicated extreme poverty at a time when the Centre has been challenging the federal structure of the country.
“The situation in Kerala is special — here, wealth is not controlled by just a few people,” he said.
Responding to the Opposition’s allegations that the declaration was a sham, the CM termed it “an unfortunate remark”, and said all cabinet ministers were present when the move to lift the last family out of extreme poverty was initiated.
“After that family from Ernakulam was brought out of the extreme poverty belt, I was informed that a meeting in this regard was even conducted in that district,” he said.
CM: Over Rs 1,000 cr spent to eradicate extreme poverty
Earlier, speaking at the special session of the House, Pinarayi said the state had spent over Rs 1,000 crore to eradicate extreme poverty and make its mark in the global social landscape. The Opposition had boycotted the session questioning the propriety of convening a special session just for the CM to make a statement on extreme poverty eradication. Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan called it a “sham and a hollow proclamation”.
Taking a dig at the Opposition, Pinarayi said the LDF government only makes promises that it can fulfil and one such promise to rid the state of extreme poverty has been fulfilled. “Providing welfare pension to 62 lakh families, houses to 4.7 lakh families, setting up of around 6,000 public health facilities, expanding family health centres, free health insurance to 43 lakh families and land to four lakh families were helpful in reducing the extent and intensity of extreme poverty in the state,” the CM said.
While lauding the efforts of various stakeholders who helped achieve the ‘extreme poverty-free’ tag, the CM pointed out that vigilant activities should be carried out to sustain the achievement.
The ceremony held in the evening was presided over by Local Self-Government Minister M B Rajesh. It was also attended by Speaker A N Shamseer, cabinet ministers, MLAs, Mayor Arya Rajendran, Chief Secretary A Jayatilak, LSGD special secretary T V Anupama, among others.
