PM seeks Uttarakhand`s support for demonetisation
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a Parivartan Rally in Dehradun as part of Bharatiya Janata Party’s outreach programme to woo voters before the upcoming elections in Uttarakhand. Addressing the rally, he assured the crowds that soon India will see the end of corruption and sought support for his demonetisation drive.
Modi thanked the people for attending the rally in large numbers and said that the presence of such a huge crowd signalled that the people of Uttarakhand could't wait for development anymore. He quizzed the crowd about their lack of interest when he had hosted a rally in Dehradun in 2014 when he was running as a PM candidate for the Lok Sabha elections.
He inaugurated the 900-km Chardham Highway Development programme and said, "The inauguration of Char Dham project is a tribute to those who lost their lives during Uttarakhand flash floods."
Modi said that the Rs 12,000-crore project will give employment to the workers in the area and bring about the advent of a new economy. He said that the people working on the project like drivers, labourers, cleaners, etc. will get jobs.
He assured the crowds that the highway project is not a political ploy to woo the voters.
He took a dig at the previous UPA government and targeted them for not providing free gas connections to the people living beneath poverty line in the country. He said, "There was a time in this country when people had to visit the houses of politicians just to acquire a gas cylinder or connection."
He said, "My government took the initiative and said that we will electrify villages within 1000 days. Over 12,000 villages have already been electrified."
He took a jibe at the previous governments for not bringing any conclusion to the One Rank One Pension (Orop) issue for 40 years when they were in power.
"I respect the Indian Army and I wanted to to do something that benefits them. We brought conclusion of the Orop issue and dispersed funds worth Rs 6,600 crore to help the retired soldiers. This helped the economy of Uttarakhand," he said.
Taking another dig at his critics, he said, "I am a watchman of this country. Some people don't like me keeping watch on the corrupt people of this country. Black money is bad for the nation and corruption should be ended. I have waged a war against this. I need your blessings to fight against corruption."
He announced, "We have decided that there will be no interviews for the position of class 3 and class 4 officers. This is to kill corruption. Jobs will be given on the basis of merit. This is the end of corruption."
"We took the step the demonetisation to curb black money. But some people didn't give up their bad habits. These deceiving people took back-door entries to still carry on hoarding black money. But we have waged a war against them," he said.
Reminiscing the time when India was a rich state, he said, "The people of the country have come forward to fight the the war against corruption. Black-money hoarders are scared of the government."
