Date:23/12/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/12/23/stories/2007122357650300.htm

New Delhi

Koda hopeful of continued Congress support

Ranchi: With 24 days remaining for a review of support by the Congress to the UPA coalition, Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda is confident of its continued outside support following the Congress stand against the opposition no-confidence motion which was defeated in the Assembly.

The Congress on November 15 gave a 19-point memorandum to the Chief Minister and would review its support on January 15 after assessing Mr. Koda’s performance on those issues.

Some of the important issues raised by the Congress are speeding up the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), rural electrification, good law and order, poverty eradication and checking corruption.

“Jharkhand has finished third in the country in implementing NREGA. It has also topped the chart in 20-point programme implementation in the country,” Mr. Koda told newsmen .

Giving an account as to how the State Government is speeding up on all the issues raised by the Congress, Mr. Koda said his government had succeeded in speeding up things on many fronts.

“But development is a regular process, and the speed of work will increase with the passage of time ... I have also introduced Janata Darbar to listen grievances of the people directly,” he said while reiterating that the Congress would back him even after the deadline.

Mr. Koda, however, said there were some bottlenecks which had to be removed to accelerate development programmes.

“Forest Act is slowing down rural electrification, and with 30 per cent forest cover, we need to have some relaxation in the Forest Act for a balanced development in the state,” Mr. Koda said.

The Chief Minister said he had raised the issue with the Centre and requested relaxation of Forest Acts, at least on those projects taken up before 1980.

“Swarnarekha multi-purse project is lying pending for over two decades because of forest non-clearance. If the project gets underway, 2.5 lakh hectare land could be irrigated, and would benefit our farmers,” he said.

Jharkhand would start getting funds by March next under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewable Mission as the State had adhered to the parameters set for it, he added.

On law and order, the Chief Minister took credit that the crime graph in Jharkhand was far lower in comparison to other states. PTI