PM interacts through PRAGATI

Deploy young officers in Aspirational Districts; set timelines to bring aspirational districts up to national average: PM Transport and Agriculture Ministries should come together to develop an e-model of logistics support for agricultural products: PM To tackle stubble burning, Agriculture Ministry to distribute equipment to farmers of Punjab, Haryana and UP on a priority basis: PM Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today chaired the 31st interaction through PRAGATI — the ICT based multi-modal platform for Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation. In the previous PRAGATI meetings, a total of 265 projects with a total investment of Rs. 12.15 lakh crore, 47 programmes/ schemes and grievances related to 17 sectors (22 subjects) had been reviewed. The PRAGATI meeting today witnessed review of 9 projects worth over Rs. 61,000 crore related to 16 states and the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir. Grievances of Indian citizens working abroad along with subjects like National Agriculture Market and Aspirational District Programme were also discussed. Fulfilling Aspirations Reviewing the progress of Aspirational District Programme, Prime Minister was informed about dashboard based on 49 performance indicators. Even slow moving indicators like status of nutrition have shown tremendous progress. It was also noted that some districts of Uttar Pradesh have shown impressive growth. Calling it an act of national service, Prime Minister laid stress on the importance of focussing on education and healthcare of tribal children. He emphasized on the need to decide on timelines to bring the backward districts up to the national average. He also stressed that young officers must be deployed in Aspirational Districts. Agriculture & Allied Activities Prime Minister was informed about the progress in National Agriculture Market platform which has helped in better price discovery. E-payments are now being made directly into the account of farmers. Progress in development of two integrated e-Mandis in Jammu & Kashmir was also reviewed. Prime Minister directed that based on e-models of demand aggregation, Ministry of Road, Transport & Highways and Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare should work together on a new start-up model of logistics support, particularly with regard to transfer of agricultural products from one state to another. He said that all the states must come together and use a common, integrated platform for smooth operation. On the issue of stubble burning, Prime Minister directed Agriculture Ministry to give priority to the farmers of the states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana in distribution of equipment to prevent such occurrences. Developing Infrastructure Connectivity Prime Minister reviewed the progress of infrastructure connectivity projects including Katra-Banihal Railway Line. He gave explicit instructions on speedy completion of the project by next year. Several projects in the north-east like the widening and upgradation of Aizawl-Tuipang highway project was also discussed. To provide faster and safer connectivity between Delhi and Meerut, Prime Minister said that Delhi-Meerut Expressway should be completed by the revised time-line of May 2020. Prime Minister desired that long delayed projects should be expedited by the respective state governments. He directed that regular reports on the progress of such projects be sent to his office. Meeting Energy Demand On the renewable energy front, Prime Minister chaired discussions about the creation of an intra-state transmission system in 8 renewable energy rich states viz. Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. He enquired about difficulties being faced by solar and wind power companies in starting new projects, including in the land acquisition process. Prime Minister congratulated the state governments of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh for progress made in timely completion of the project related to strengthening of transmission system beyond Vemagiri.