Chhattisgarh146;s name game

It is not uncommon to name government development schemes, programmes and institutions in the memory of freedom fighters and national leader...

It is not uncommon to name government development schemes, programmes and institutions in the memory of freedom fighters and national leaders. But what8217;s striking about Chhattisgarh is that ever since Ajit Jogi 8212; an engineer turned bureaucrat 8212; came to power, he has been trying to create a record by dedicating almost everything to the Nehru-Gandhis.

While doing my first story in Chhattisgarh on crop rotation 8212; Jogi wants farmers here to switch over to crops other than paddy 8212; I discovered many interesting facts about Jogi8217;s tryst with the family. Guess what Jogi has named the crop rotation scheme? The Rajiv Kisan Mitan Yojana.

A week later, Jogi8217;s speech at a function intrigued me even further. He seemed to be reeling off a string of schemes named after Indira and Rajiv Gandhi. There was the Rajiv Jeevan Rekha Yojana 8212; aimed at providing better healthcare to the poor, and the Indira Hareli Saheli Yojana 8212; yet another popular scheme to involve village folk, mainly women, in afforestation.

Next on my notebook come the Indira Soochna Shakti Yojana, a scheme providing computer education to girl students. According to the official statement on it, the 8216;8216;scheme is a tribute to late Indira Gandhi, who symbolised shakti, strength and power for the masses, the women folks8230;8217;8217;

There is the Rajiv Gyanodaya Scheme 8212; opening reading-cum-knowledge centres in rural areas; the Indira Gaon Ganga Yojana 8212; a scheme to create a sustainable water source in every village; the Indira Khet Ganga Yojana 8212; an irrigation scheme for rain shadow areas; the Indira Sahara Yojana, a social security scheme; the Indira Mahila Kosh, the Rajiv Khel Maidan Yojana, the Indira Sehari Sarovar Yojana8230;The list seems endless.

But I wondered why everything was named after either Rajiv Gandhi or Indira Gandhi. Has the Chhattisgarh government forgotten Rajiv Gandhi8217;s grandpa? I received my answer from Ravindra Chouby, minister for urban development. He filled me in on the Nehru Bal Udhayan Yojana, for developing children8217;s parks in all urban towns.

Incidentally, one of the few exceptions to this general rule is Raipur8217;s medical college and hospital, which has been named after Dr B.R. Ambedkar!

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Though senior government offiials are unable to provide the exact number of schemes and programmes named after Indira, Rajiv or Nehru, since the formation of the state, a rough estimate puts the figure at over four dozen.

Jogi8217;s shrewd naming spree brought him appreciation from Sonia Gandhi at the Guwahati meet.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh, too, hasn8217;t done too badly. His government has named all its social welfare missions after Rajiv Gandhi. So you have the Rajiv Gandhi Shiksha Mission, the Rajiv Gandhi Mission on Control of Diarrhoeal Diseases, and so on. But, by any token, Jogi is streets ahead of Digvijay Singh in terms of the name game.