Chief Minister Raghubar Das on Tuesday said agriculture and rural development will be focus areas for the Government in the year 2019. He said the New Year will witness the emergence of a new Jharkhand. He shared

Extending his warm wishes for the New Year, Das in his press meet organised at Sidhgora Sone Mandap said the New Year will growth in various sectors including health, education, infrastructure development, agriculture, rural development, social welfare, power and traffic policing. He also sought suggestions for development of all sectors and improvement in schemes.

The CM said, “Jharkhand government has taken a pledge to create a state free of crime and corruption. New avenues of development will be opened in the year ahead.

The rate of development will increase manifold. Numerous schemes will be started for the needy and poor people. Agriculture and rural development departments would also start many schemes. We are committed to empowerment of women and improvement in basic civic amenities including drinking water and electricity supply to all households. More roads would be built and traffic woes of people would be eliminated forever.”

Das said extremism was breathing its last in the state. He said the people were the real masters of democracy and that it was the duty of the government to provide protection to them. “In the last four years, the government has been able to control Left-sponsored extremism to a great extent. The police machinery is striving to end the menace. Wherever violence is visible, it will be controlled soon,” he said.

The CM said the state had seen considerable decline in organized crime. Hardcore criminals are being successfully prosecuted, he said.

The CM said development is the panacea to all problems of the state. “Security is related to development and Jharkhand is raring to become the top state of the country,” he said.

Das said the government would implement those schemes that were going to benefit the maximum number of people. “The annual budget would be presented on 22nd January. Government will launch Mukhyamantri Krishi Ashirwad Yojana under which Rs 5000 would be transferred directly to the bank accounts of farmers having less than an acre of land. Around 20 lakh farmers will be benefitted from this scheme.

This will make the PM’s dream of doubling farmers’ income true by 2022,” he said.

The CM said the government will set up processing plants to sell local products to Patanjali with whom a Memorandum of Understanding will soon be entered. By 2022, farmers’ income will go up four times. On January 6, 36 women of Jharkhand will go to Israel to learn modern farming techniques, he said. In order to empower women, the CM said, Mukhyamantri Sukanya Yojana will be passed in the Cabinet meeting on January 3. As many as 27 lakh women will be benefitted by this scheme.