Maha govt to implement Adi Shakti campaign for women empowerment

Ahilyanagar, May 6 Maharashtra Cabinet meeting chaired by the Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday took a slew of decisions during the Tricentennial Anniversary Year of Ahilyabai Holkar, the famed 18th-century warrior queen.

The meeting, which took place at Ahilyabai Holkar’s birthplace Choundi, decided to implement Adi Shakti campaign for women empowerment, produce a commercial multilingual film on Ahilyabai Holkar featuring her life, leadership and battles she fought, construct hostels for the Dhangar community students pursuing post matriculation education, launch of special projects to rejuvenate and revive water distribution systems set up Ahilyabai Holkar and reconstruction of temples across the state.

The Chief Minister told reporters that the government will launch the Adi Shakti campaign and give away awards to create awareness and sensitivity about various problems faced by women, including financial, social, academic and health.

The campaign, to be implemented through women and child welfare department, aims to reduce malnutrition, infant mortality and maternity deaths, increase education of girls by curbing gender inequality, create society free from child marriage and violence free family and community building and women development by providing benefits of government schemes and self employment opportunities.

The government will give away awards to the gram panchayats for the successful implementation of this campaign. The government will spend Ra 10.50 crore for the state-wide implementation of the Adi Shakti campaign.

The government will implement a scheme named after Raje Yashwantrao Holkar to provide education to 10,000 students from the Dhangar community in leading schools annually. The scheme is titled as Yashwant Students Scheme. The government has distributed Rs 288.92 for this scheme.

Raje Yashwantrao Holkar, between 1797 and 1811, in a bid to promote education, had implemented the gurukul scheme, military education, among others. He opened education for all and developed facilities for girls’ education.

The Chief Minister said that the Cabinet has also approved the development of hostels at the revenue division headquarters for Dhangar community students pursuing post-matriculation education.

He said that this will be named after Ahilyabai Holkar Hostel Scheme. Each hostel will have an intake capacity of 200 students, comprising 100 boys and girls each.

“These hostels will come in Nabi Mumbai, Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Nashik, Nagpur and Amravati. The work is underway in Nashik, while the development will begin soon in Pune and Nagpur,” he said.

Meanwhile, in order to rejuvenate, revive and protect the water sources and distribution systems developed by Ahilyabai Holkar, the government will implement a special plan at the cost of Rs 75 crore. The government proposes to preserve three historical lakes at Chandwad, Trimbakeshwar, Malhar Gautameshwar and Jejuri, 19 wells, six troughs and six ghats and 34 reservoirs. The government proposes to repair those reservoirs, remove sludge, revive water sources and beautify them.

Further, the Cabinet approved the opening of a government medical college and a 430-bed hospital at Ahilyanagar at the cost of Rs 486.08 crore. The college will be named after Ahilyabai Holkar. The government will provide land for the district civil hospital and the necessary manpower.

The Chief Minister said the Cabinet, in a bid to support Ahilyabai Holkar’s temple reconstruction works, has cleared the restoration and conservation of six temples and a memorial of the 18th-century warrior queen at the cost of Rs 5503.69 crore.

Further, the Cabinet approved the establishment of an industrial training institute for girls and women in Ahilyanagar and the setting up of a civil court at Rahuri.

The Cabinet also approved extending the duration of Mission Managram implemented through the Village Social Transformation Foundation (VSTF) up to 2028 from 2022-25.

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