Opposition walks out amid Himachal governor’s address, calls it ‘bundle of lies’

Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, speaking to reporters outside the Assembly later, challenged the Opposition MLAs to prove their claim that the government’s achievements mentioned in the governor’s address were a bundle of lies.

While addressing the session, Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar said that to fight the Covid pandemic, the BJP government had set up three temporary hospitals as well as more oxygen plants and ventilators.

As many as 46 pressure swing adsorption plants for making 90 metric tonnes of oxygen were established with central government support. Whereas only 52 ventilators were available in the state, 1,014 ventilators are functional in various hospitals now. About 17, 000 oxygen cylinders and concentrators, up from 3,000, are available now. The governor also said the state was the first in the country to administer two doses of Covid vaccines to everyone eligible.

Over the past three years, 23, 931 posts had been filled in government departments. And 5,546 posts were filled in different boards, corporations, public undertakings and universities.

The governor said that the government was implementing a Swamitva Yojana to grant ownership rights to possession holders in 15,495 villages within a year. The scheme was being piloted in the Hamirpur district with the help of drones.

He said the government was able to increase revenue receipts by 109 per cent in the first quarter, 29 per cent in the second quarter and 8 per cent in the third quarter. Despite the pandemic, Rs 6,226 crore has been collected in revenue in the current financial year—a 33 per cent jump from the last year.

The government has extended till March the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, under which two kilograms of rice and three kilograms of wheat are being provided free for every person, the governor’s address said.