ROURKELA: In his first official visit to Sundargarh, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Sunday launched the third phase of the Subhadra scheme at Jatra ground in the district headquarters town and digitally released the first instalment of Rs 5,000 to over 20 lakh beneficiaries.
Addressing the beneficiaries, the CM said Subhadra scheme is Odisha’s largest women-centric programme which aims to financially empower women. Equating women with Goddess Subhadra, he said in Jagannath culture, there is a natural tradition of respecting and protecting women.
“With Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of developing Bharat and Odisha by 2047, the double-engine government is working towards ensuring people-led development. The government aims to make Odisha a 500 billion dollar economy by 2036 and 1.5 trillion dollar economy by 2047,” he said.
The CM further said with the target to make Odisha a manufacturing and business hub, his government has been vigorously inviting industrial investment to create wealth and new job opportunities. The Centre has provided a staggering Rs 40,000 crore for augmentation of railway and road infrastructure in Odisha.
“The previous BJD government bragged about Mission Shakti with involvement of 70 lakh women, but did nothing to financially empower them. They were only given interest-free loan with major contribution coming from the Centre. With the formation of the double-engine government, we are committed to work for the growth of Odisha with double the pace,” he said.
Highlighting the unparalleled contribution of Sundargarh to field hockey, the CM said its District Mineral Foundation (DMF) collection is the second largest in the country. The district is also abundantly blessed with tourism sites, higher educational institutions and tribal cultural heritage. “The state government is committed to ensuring its continuous growth and making Sundargarh a number one district,” he added.
Union Tribal Affairs minister and Sundargarh MP Jual Oram said the successful implementation of the Subhadra scheme has silenced critics who initially raised apprehension about it.
Deputy CM Pravati Parida said during the previous two phases of the scheme, over 60 lakh beneficiaries including 2.47 lakh from Sundargarh received the first instalment. In the third phase, about 20 lakh women including over 90,000 from Sundargarh were covered.
She said the Subhadra scheme presented a shining example of women-led digitisation as around 1.04 crore women applicants got digitally connected with the programme.
On the occasion, Majhi laid foundation for 288 projects worth around Rs 312 crore, inaugurated 692 projects valued at around Rs 808.30 crore and dedicated four projects of around Rs 81 crore.
Among others, Panchayati Raj minister Rabi Narayan Naik, RN Pali MLA DC Tanti, Women & Child Development secretary Subha Sharma and Sundargarh collector Manoj S Mahajan were present.