Akhilesh did nothing even in SP strongholds, says Yogi
Lucknow, June 7: Uttar Pradesh Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday launched a scathing attack on his predecessor Akhilesh Yadav, saying the Samajwadi Party (SP) chief had failed in implementing the government's pro-poor schemes.
Addressing a public rally in the Yadav stronghold of Mainpuri, the Chief Minister said while in the last year of the SP government no houses were constructed under the Prime Minister's housing scheme, in the last one year 577 houses had been made under the BJP regime.
"During the five-year SP government, only 500 houses were constructed," he pointed out.
Adityanath said in his entire tenure, Akhilesh Yadav had provided power connections to only 525 villages, while his government had in a small time of one year taken electricity to 1,051 villages.
Similarly, he said under the community wedding scheme of the state government, only 1,627 poor families had benefited, while in the one-year rule of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), this number had gone up to 2,320.
The Chief Minister later reviewed the law and order situation in the district. He also presided over a "Chaupal" under the party's Gram Swaraj Mission and interacted with villagers in an attempt to know their problems and get a first-hand account of the reach of government schemes at the ground level.
"People from among you have done nothing for you. There had not been a single loan waiver in Mainpuri in 2017, while in the last one year we have waived off loans of 38,001 farmers of the district," 46-year-old Adityanath.
He also warned officials that he would not tolerate any laxity with regard to welfare and people-oriented schemes rolled out by his government.
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Modi should leverage his ties with world leaders to de-escalate war in West Asia: Omar Abdullah
Jammu (PTI): Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said India can play a meaningful role in de-escalation in West Asia, given Prime Minister Narendra Modi's strong relations with the warring countries and their neighbours.
He said Pakistan was leveraging ties with Iran and the United States, and that any effort towards ending the war should be welcomed.
"As I said in the House (Assembly), we would like the war to end as soon as possible. The role that the prime minister can play may not be possible for anyone else because of his good relations with all these countries," Abdullah told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.
He, however, said any escalation would not be easy to manage.
"Any such move by US President Donald Trump, despite the long history of Iran resisting external domination, would not be easy," the chief minister said.
Asked about Pakistan mediating in the war, he said, "I will simply say that if any country can play a role in preventing this war, no one should have any objection to it."
He added, "I will repeat what I said … our prime minister has good and close relations with all countries — whether it is Israel, the United States, Iran, or the countries around Iran. If those relationships can be used to make some progress and help ease the situation, it would be a good thing."
Abdullah said attacks by terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed in India, as suggested by a report from the United States, are not unlikely.
Meanwhile, he asserted that any efforts to end the war, be it from Pakistan, must not be resisted.
"Pakistan is using its good relations with Iran and the United States to its advantage, and it has done so. How can we object to that? If that angle helps in stopping the war, would you want them not to act and let the war continue? We want the war to stop. If any country can play a role in that, it should. And if we can play an even better role, then we should do so," he said.
On unemployment in J-K, the chief minister said the issue cannot be resolved overnight, and government jobs alone are not the solution.
He stressed the need to explore alternative avenues, highlighting the importance of Mission Yuva in promoting entrepreneurship.
"Mission Yuva provides not just funding but also support in preparing DPRs and post-startup assistance, such as marketing. In just nine months, distributing Rs 1,000 crore and approving numerous schemes is a significant achievement," he said.
Abdullah credited the coordination between the government and Jammu and Kashmir Bank for the scheme's progress.
