BJP govt in Haryana in its 3rd term will work at faster pace: PM Modi

PANIPAT: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday assured that the BJP government in Haryana, in its third term, will work at a faster pace for the development of the state.

Addressing a gathering after launching the 'Bima Sakhi Yojana' of state-owned LIC, Modi said the central government, in the last 10 years, has taken several measures to empower women in various sectors, including defence, banking, and agriculture.

He said the third BJP government in Haryana will work at a "three times faster pace" for the development of the state.

To empower women, Modi said it is very important that they get ample opportunities to move forward and every obstacle is removed from in front of them.

When women get an opportunity to move forward, they open new doors of opportunities for the country, the Prime Minister said.

He further said that for a long time, there were many jobs in the country that were forbidden for women, but the BJP government has resolved to remove every obstacle coming their way.

Modi also informed the gathering that over 10 crore women across the country are associated with self-help groups.

In the last 10 years, the government has provided assistance of more than Rs 8 lakh crore to women-led self-help groups, he noted.

Listing out the initiatives taken by the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, Modi took a dig at the Opposition, saying those who weigh everything on the scale of the vote bank have failed to understand why he was increasingly getting the support of women in the country.

Those who considered mothers and sisters only as a vote bank will not be able to understand this strong relationship, Modi said.

The Prime Minister further said about 1.15 crore women have become Lakhpati Didi.

He has set a target to make 3 crore women as Lakhpati Didi.

Lakhpati Didi is a member of a self-help group (SHG) who earns an annual household income exceeding Rs 1 lakh.

'Bima Sakhi Yojana', an initiative of state-owned LIC, is designed to empower women aged 18-70 years who are Class X pass.

They will receive specialised training and a stipend for the first three years to promote financial literacy and insurance awareness.

Under the scheme, female agents will also get a stipend of Rs 7,000 per month for the first year, Rs 6,000 per month in the second year, and Rs 5,000 per month in the third year. Bima Sakhis will also get the benefit of commission.

The plan is to appoint 2 lakh Bima Sakhi over three years.

After training, they can serve as LIC agents, and the graduate Bima Sakhis would have the opportunity to qualify for being considered for Development Officer roles in LIC. Prime Minister will also distribute appointment certificates to prospective Bima Sakhis.

The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone of the main campus of Maharana Pratap Horticultural University, Karnal.

The main campus and six regional research stations, spread over 495 acres, will be established at a cost of over Rs 700 crore.

The university will have one college of horticulture for graduate and post-graduate studies and five schools covering 10 horticulture disciplines. It will work towards crop diversification and world-class research for the development of horticulture technologies.