Himachal CM leaves assembly session for 2-day Varanasi enclave of BJP CMs

Shimla: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Monday reached Varanasi from Dharamshala–where he was camping for a five-long winter session of the state assembly.

Thakur will attend a two-day conclave of 12 BJP Chief Ministers, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address, beside union Home minister Amit Shah and BJP national president J P Nadda.

As per sources close to the Chief Minister, the Prime Ministers' Office (PMO) has told all the participating Chief Ministers to come with details and presentations about pro-people initiatives taken by the individual states and also public response to these schemes.

Himachal Pradesh recently had witnessed four bypolls which went against the ruling party thus raising questions as to how the schemes started by Jai Ram Thakur had been received by the masses or is it also a reflection on his governance, particularly in the light of the next year's assembly elections in the state.

Since the outcome of the bypoll, opposition congress has been keeping the government under pressure over issues relating to the government employees, police constables, denied regulation of their services and grant of 'payband', Out-source employees and others asking for implementation of the old pension scheme.

But the Chief Minister, as his aides, suggest is going to highlight how the state achieved 100 percent vaccination of both doses, handled the Covid, implemented Himcare scheme for providing cashless medical care, Free LPG connection and implemented Jan-manch, a public outreach programme.

The opposition doesn't feel there is much to hardsell about the government's four year in the state as change of power is inevitable next year as people are completely disillusioned with the government.

In the House, the opposition created a ruckus asking for an adjournment for a discussion of some of the burning issues of the government employees. More than four lakh government employees are the biggest vote bank in Himachal Pradesh. Thus, both ruling BJP and opposition are trying to score a point on the issue ahead of the next year's poll.

The Chief Minister is likely to return to Dharamshala on December 15 on the last day of the session. Thereafter he will get busy making preparations for the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit at Mandi on December 27--when the Jai Ram Thakur government will complete four years in power.