MSMEs 'betrayed' in 'crony-centric' budget: Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi: Describing the Union Budget as "crony-centric", Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) were given no low interest loans or GST relief which meant that the employers of India's largest workforce were "betrayed".
The Congress had earlier slammed the budget, saying it was a "let down like never before". The Opposition party had claimed that the budget will unravel soon.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday presented the budget for 2021-22 in the Lok Sabha from a tablet, instead of a conventional paper document, the first paperless budget since Independence.
Hitting out at the government, Gandhi on Thursday tweeted, "Modi's crony centric budget means -- Struggling MSMEs given no low interest loans, no GST relief. The employers of India's largest workforce betrayed."
In his first reaction to the budget on Monday, Gandhi had alleged that the Narendra Modi government plans to handover the country's assets to crony capitalists.
The BJP leaders had lauded the budget for its focus on a number of measures, including substantial allocation for healthcare sector, capital expenditure, tax exemption for senior citizens and incentives for start-ups among others.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
