PM calls for priority distribution of equipment to farmers in Punjab, Haryana, UP to tackle stubble burning

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday chaired the 31st interaction through 'PRAGATI' and asked the Agriculture Ministry to distribute equipment to farmers of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on a priority basis to tackle stubble burning.

He said that Transport and Agriculture Ministries should come together to develop an e-model of logistics support for agricultural products.

The Prime Minister also called for deploying young officers in aspirational districts and setting timelines to bring them up to national average.

According to an official release, Prime Minister gave explicit instructions for speedy completion of Katra-Bhal Railway Line by next year and said that Delhi-Meerut Expressway should be completed by the revised timeline of May 2020.

He said that long-delayed projects should be expedited by the respective state governments and directed that regular reports on the progress of such projects be sent to his office.

It said that in the previous PRAGATI meetings, a total of 265 projects with a total investment of Rs 12.15 lakh crore, besides 47 schemes and grievances related to 17 sectors had been reviewed.

The PRAGATI meeting -- ICT based multi-modal platform for Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation -- witnessed a review of nine projects worth over Rs 61,000 crore related to 16 states and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

Grievances of Indian citizens working abroad along with subjects like National Agriculture Market and Aspirational District Programme were also discussed.

In the review of the progress of Aspirational District Programme, Prime Minister was informed about dashboard based on 49 performance indicators.

"Even slow-moving indicators like the status of nutrition have shown tremendous progress. It was also noted that some districts of Uttar Pradesh have shown impressive growth," the release said.

Calling it an act of national service, Prime Minister laid stress on the importance of focussing on education and healthcare of tribal children.

"He emphasized the need to decide on timelines to bring the backward districts up to the national average. He also stressed that young officers must be deployed in Aspirational Districts," the release said.

The Prime Minister was informed about the progress in the National Agriculture Market platform, which has helped in better price discovery.

"E-payments are now being made directly into the account of farmers. Progress in the development of two integrated e-mandis in Jammu and Kashmir was also reviewed," the release said.

"Prime Minister directed that based on e-models of demand aggregation, Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways and Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare should work together on a new start-up model of logistics support, particularly with regard to the transfer of agricultural products from one state to another," the release said.

It said that all the states must come together and use a common, integrated platform for smooth operation.

"On the issue of stubble burning, Prime Minister directed Agriculture Ministry to give priority to the farmers of the states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana in the distribution of equipment to prevent such occurrences," the release said.

Modi reviewed the progress of infrastructure connectivity projects including Katra-Bhal Railway Line.

"He gave explicit instructions on speedy completion of the project by next year," the release said.

Several projects in the north-east like the widening and up-gradation of Aizawl-Tuipang highway project was also discussed.

"To provide faster and safer connectivity between Delhi and Meerut, Prime Minister said that Delhi-Meerut Expressway should be completed by the revised timeline of May 2020," the release said.

On the renewable energy front, Prime Minister chaired discussions about the creation of an intra-state transmission system in eight renewable energy-rich states - Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.

He enquired about difficulties being faced by solar and wind power compes in starting new projects, including in the land acquisition process.

Prime Minister congratulated the state governments of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh for progress made in timely completion of the project related to the strengthening of transmission system beyond Vemagiri.

( With inputs from ANI )