Special package to N-E states, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh soon: Sonia

New Delhi: The country’s northeastern states along with Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh will soon get a special package, Congress president Sonia Gandhi said today. “A special package is being prepared for northeastern states and hilly states like Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh,” Gandhi said. Buoyed by the response to UPA’s rural livelihood scheme, the Congress president also sought quick implementation of Aajivika mission across the nation especially its central and eastern parts.[caption id=“attachment_837611” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Congress president Sonia Gandhi. PTI[/caption] Gandhi’s thrust on the scheme comes at a time when Congress is bracing for Lok Sabha elections due next year and assembly elections in five states including BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh this year. Giving a thrust to poverty alleviation in her address at the second anniversary of the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) in New Delhi, Gandhi said that the empowerment of weaker sections and women has been the main pillar of our UPA government. She said that in the next ten years, seven crore BPL families have to be freed from poverty, which is not an easy job. “But by adopting the Aajivika Mission, many states have proved that through women SHGs, economical and social changes can be brought in the rural areas. “Seeing this success, it seems that now the Aajivika Mission will have to be implemented fast across the country especially in central and eastern India,” Gandhi said. Aajeevika was launched by Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) in June 2011. It aims at creating efficient and effective institutional platforms of the rural poor enabling them to increase household income through sustainable livelihood enhancements and improved access to financial services. NRLM has set out with an agenda to cover seven crore BPL households, across 600 districts, 6000 blocks, 2.5 lakh Gram Panchayats and 6 lakh villages through self-managed Self Help Groups (SHGs) and support them for livelihood collectives in a period of 8-10 years. Hailing the NRLM as an important programme of the UPA, Gandhi claimed that in no other country of the world, such an ambitious and huge scheme for the empowerment of women exists. “Today everybody has proved that this programme can free women from the curse of poverty. Such an an emancipation is based on stable and self-made employment and not on the mercy and kindness of anybody. “Our purpose is clear. We have to strengthen the women SHGs and their instruments financially,” she said. Maintaining that the empowerment of weaker sections and women has been the main focus of the UPA government, she said that the capacity to bring a change in society lies in the women most as they are the ones in the families and societies on whose shoulders lie responsibility of nurturing coming generations. “Women are the worst victims of poverty and social exploitation especially those belonging to the minorities, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. “….For the financial empowerment of women, we have still to do much more, have to increase their skills by getting more loans so that they can get new opportunities of livelihood…The social revolution that we want to bring about is possible only through the women,” Gandhi said addressing the gathering. The Congress President also noted that the UPA government has initiated measures for the social and financial empowerment of women in Jammu and Kashmir through the instrument of women SHGs. “In the next five years, we hope to reach this programme to two thirds of the families in the state. I have been told that its result is very positive and we will see its many successes soon,” Gandhi said. Gandhi also referred to a woman SHG member from Jammu and Kashmir, who spoke from the dais on how the scheme Himayat empowered her financially. Gandhi also referred to a Cabinet decision taken last month on women SHGS. “UPA government recently took one more very important decision through which women SHGs can get a loan up to Rs 3 lakh at 7 percent annual interest and those SHGs, which will pay their loan in time will get an additional discount of three percent on interest. With this, the women members of the SHGs will get more encouragement,” Gandhi said. She also referred to the government’s decision to establish a national women bank with an initial capital of Rs 1000 crore that will be run by women and will provide service only to women and women SHGS. However, the Congress President said that more needs to be done for financial empowerment of women. “We still have to do much more. We have to increase their skills by getting more loans so that they can get new opportunities of livelihood,” she said. Gandhi said many special initiatives taken under Aajivika including for empowerment of women farmers, skill development for rural women and employment generation programmes in Naxal-hit areas will encourage income generation. PTI