Shimla: Asserting that his government has fulfilled five-out of 10-guarantees made by the Congress during polls, Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu said that his role is to make Himachal Pradesh fully self-reliant in next four years and a leading state in green energy.
Sukhu, who completed 100 days in power on Tuesday, said despite having inherited a huge debt liability, the government was marching fast on the fulfilment of the election promises including Old Pension Scheme (OPS) — a key promise that brought the party to power. The OPS will be implemented from April 1 and its benefits will reach 1.36 lakh employees.
In the first phase, 2.31 lakh women in the age group of 18 to 60 years will start getting Rs 1,500 per month as pension. This was the second big guarantee made in the poll. Chief Minister said the Congress was in the power not to enjoy it but to make “Vyavstha Parivartan”— a significant change in the system of governance and delivery of services cutting down delays and high costs.
Speaking to Millennium Post exclusively, the chief minister said the Budget, which was presented in the state assembly on March 17, has set out an ambitious agenda to develop Himachal Pradesh as a “green energy state’ by March 31, 2023 apart from making it a model state for electric vehicles.
“We are going to be the first state to provide a 40 per cent subsidy to youths for setting up solar energy projects of 250 Kw to 2 MW linking this mission with jobs and youth empowerment. Any youth having land or taking land can go in for setting up a solar power project with the government’s help and thereafter can sell the power to us,” he offered.
Further, the government has introduced a scheme to provide subsidy upto 50 lakhs to youths to buy e-buses and e-trucks as a measure to cut down pollution in the state and switch over to electric transport in a phased manner. More than 1,500 diesel based buses of the HRTC will also be replaced to electric buses and girl students will also be given subsidy of 25,000 to purchase electric Scooties.
Sukhu said it was sad that none of the previous governments took up resource mobilisation measures on a mission mode.