Era of honesty ushered in, participatory development on a roll: Modi
Lucknow, July 28 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that an era of honesty has been ushered in the country in the past few years, and people are paying more taxes and forfeiting subsidies as they are sure that every bit of their money will be used rightly.
Addressing an event to mark the third anniversary of launch of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), Prime Minister's Aawas Yojna-Urban (PMAY-U) and the Smart City Mission, Modi said it is heartening to see that people join hands with the government in ensuring that the economy and development are fast-paced.
"People are ready to join the 'vikas yatra' as they are sure that the money they give as taxes will not be used to deck up private bungalows but will go for betterment of their living standards," the Prime Minister said in an oblique reference to money splurge by former chief ministers Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav on their bungalows.
He also mocked at Congress President Rahul Gandhi's recent remark in Parliament that the Prime Minister instead of being a self-proclaimed "chowkidar" (watchdog) of the country is a "bhaagidaar" (partner) in the wrongs.
"You must have heard a recent allegation on me that I am a 'bhaagidaar'. Yes I am -- a partner to the pains and troubles of the poor people who don't have a roof over their head, to a worried mother who has damaged her eyes cooking on earthen 'chulhas' (stoves), farmers who are worried about their crops...," he said, earning a round of applause from the gathering.
"Poverty has taught me life, I have suffered that, I have seen poverty from close quarters... Jisne bhoga hai, wahi takleef jaanta hai (Sufferers know the pain)," he said while pointing out how his opponents used to earlier taunt him for being a tea seller and question how he can occupy the chair of Prime Minister.
Before coming here, he interacted with a group of women -- beneficiaries of the PMAY-U -- from all over the country. "The glow on their faces reflected their dreams of a bright future", Modi said.
He added that the fact that work have been completed on smart city projects worth Rs 7,000 crore and works worth Rs 52,000 crore are underway reflects that his government is marching ahead to change the fortunes of the cities and the people who live in them.
"The lower-middle class and middle class will benefit out of these initiatives," Modi said.
He credited former Prime Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stalwart Atal Bihari Vajpayee with the idea of urban development that the present National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government is pursuing.
"These flyovers, convention centres, roads to link 1000 villages around Lucknow ... all this was the brain child of Vajpayeeji. He had made Lucknow an experimental lab of urban development," the Prime Minister said.
"By 2022, we propose to ensure that every Indian family has a roof over their head. In the past three years, 55 lakh houses have been sanctioned in the urban areas while one crore houses have already been given to the poor in countryside."
Batting for more power to women, the Prime Minister said he was happy to note that in the past some time, 87 lakh registries of homes have been done in the name of women.
He also patted the back of UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for expediting pro-poor and development projects in the state since he took over.
"India will grow much faster than the 7.5 per cent growth rate," the Prime Minister assured, while adding that the cities, which give 65 per cent of the revenues to the government kitty, "cannot be allowed to stay in the mess they have been for past many years".
Modi also told officials, bureaucrats and mayors of various cities to ensure implementation of five Es -- ease of living, ease of education, employment, economy and entertainment.
Lauding the people for their participatory role in the development of the nation, the PM said that on his request from the Red Fort on Independence Day to people to forfeit their LPG subsidies, 1.25 crore families have done so and 40 lakh senior citizens, who are well to do, have done away with the subsidies they got in rail reservation.
In Uttar Pradesh, he said, 46,000 persons in villages have decided to give their houses to the other needy as they have moved up the social ladder.
Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister of State for Urban Development Hardeep Puri said the government is planning urban development with an eye on accommodating 600 million in cities by 2030.
Union Home Minister and Lok Sabha MP from Lucknow Rajnath Singh said the vision of PM Modi has given a tremendous boost to many projects, which are transforming the lives of millions across the country.
Adityanath said to improve living conditions of people in the cities, the state government has banned 15-20 microns plastic bags and is mulling to completely ban disposable plastic by October 2.
"We are promoting electric vehicles, free house mission has been minimized, of the total 9.65 lakh street lights in the state, 6.35 lakh have been changed to LEDs, saving Rs 115 crore by way of power bills," he noted.
Earlier, the Prime Minister gave away awards to performing cities. The "Smart Move Best Project" went to Pune, "Best Innovative Idea Award" to Ahmedabad and Bhopal, and Surat lapped up the "Best Performing City" award.
Through a remote control, Modi also transferred online Rs 606.58 crore as funds for building houses to 60,426 beneficiaries.
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IPL first phase schedule announced amid travel concerns caused by war in West Asia
New Delhi (PTI): Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2026 opener in Bengaluru on March 28 as the BCCI announced the first phase of the tournament schedule amid concerns around players' travel arrangements due to the ongoing West Asia conflict.
All matches scheduled at the Chinnaswamy Stadium remain subject to clearance from the Karnataka government appointed expert committee, which is scheduled to meet on March 13 to assess venue preparedness in the wake of the deadly stampede at the stadium last season.
The BCCI announced the schedule of the first 20 games on Wednesday and will unveil the full schedule once the dates of elections in three states -- Tamil Nadu, Assam and West Bengal -- are announced.
Besides the state elections, the escalating conflict in West Asia will also be at the forefront of BCCI officials' minds. The war has wreaked havoc to international travel with operations of major airports like Doha and Dubai being heavily restricted.
As a result of that, some of the squad members of South Africa and West Indies are yet to reach home a week after the completion of their T20 World Cup campaign.
It remains to be seen if IPL bound players of those two nations report to their respective teams in time.
"There was a substantial delay in departure of West Indies and South Africa players. It would be a tough task to get them back to India on time. Plus the airfares have gone up substantially due to the war in West Asia," a team official told PTI.
Additionally, hotels across India are facing cooking gas shortage due to the raging conflict and on Tuesday, the central government invoked Essential Commodities Act to ensure uninterrupted supply of domestic cooking gas.
Chennai Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanthan told PTI that he is expecting his players from the West Indies and South Africa -- Akeal Hossein and Dewald Brevis, to join the team well before their IPL opener.
"We are expecting no delays from their end," he said.
The second game of the opening weekend will see Mumbai Indians host Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium and the opening weekend will not feature any double-headers.
A total of 20 matches will be played across 10 venues: Bengaluru, Mumbai, Guwahati, New Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.
"During the season, Royal Challengers Bengaluru will play five home matches in Bengaluru and two in Raipur. Punjab Kings will play four home matches in New Chandigarh and three in Dharamshala, while Rajasthan Royals will play three home matches in Guwahati and four in Jaipur," said the BCCI in a statement.
"During this period (the first 16 days), the tournament will feature four double-headers, with the afternoon matches beginning at 03:30 PM IST and the evening matches commencing at 07:30 PM IST.
"Following the opening encounter on Saturday, Mumbai Indians will take on Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday.
"The matches scheduled in Bengaluru are subject to clearance from the Expert Committee constituted by the Government of Karnataka," the BCCI added.
