Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has declared that his government is not afraid of criticism and will continue to introduce governance reforms. The chief minister made these comments during his two-hour reply to the Budget debate in the state assembly on Tuesday.
Khattar’s statement comes amid criticism from opposition parties regarding the state government’s flagship Parivar Pehchan Patra (family ID) scheme and several sarpanches opposing the e-tendering system in development works in rural areas. However, the chief minister stated that his government will not be deterred by the opposition and will continue to implement good works. During the budget debate, Khattar announced several new initiatives, including the renaming of the ‘Vidhayak Adarsh Gram Yojana’ scheme as ‘Adarsh Nagar Evam Gram Yojana.’ He also announced that MLAs could spend an amount of Rs 2 crore under this scheme for development works in urban areas.
Khattar further announced the construction of an additional 4,000 playway schools, apart from the already announced 4,000 in the year 2022-23. The chief minister also stated that the women’s college to be constructed at Balsamand, Hisar, will be named after former chief minister late Bhajan Lal.
During his reply, Khattar also took on Leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who was absent due to illness. The CM clarified the definition of debt and claimed that the debt graph of the state has declined.
Khattar also responded to an issue raised by the Opposition regarding Haryana receiving less financial help from the Centre as compared to neighboring states. The chief minister stated that the Centre follows the formula that “the more progressive a state is, lesser the financial grant will be.” He further emphasized his government’s focus on making panchayats and civic bodies financially independent.
