Jaipur, Oct 2: Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma on Friday said that the state government is preparing a detailed roadmap for the overall development of gram panchayats, calling upon sarpanches to ensure that benefits of government schemes reach every eligible person.
Addressing a Panchayati Raj representatives' dialogue programme here, Sharma said that a sarpanch is the first point of contact for a villager seeking resolution of problems.
"The first objective of a sarpanch should be to ensure that benefits of government schemes reach every needy person. For this, they should continuously interact with people in their villages," he said.
Sharma, who has himself served as a sarpanch, also shared his experiences of working at the village level.
"If our villages become stronger, Rajasthan will become stronger. If gram panchayats are transparent, accountable and participatory, both the pace and impact of development will increase," he said.
The chief minister said the government was working towards its "One State-One Election" commitment and had created eight new zila parishads, 94 panchayat samitis and 3,467 gram panchayats.
He said the government has so far provided appointments to 1.93 lakh people, while recruitment for 1.18 lakh posts was underway and a recruitment calendar had been issued for another 1.25 lakh posts.
Sharma said a roadmap for development of villages was being prepared under the Mukhyamantri Viksit Gram-Shahri Ward Abhiyan.
"Atal Gyan Kendras are also being established at the panchayat level, providing facilities including libraries, e-libraries, online coaching and e-Mitra services," he said.
He said 3.82 lakh houses had been completed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin and another 4.53 lakh were under construction.
Panchayati Raj Minister Madan Dilawar, Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Avinash Gehlot, Minister of State for Panchayati Raj Otaram Dewasi and public representatives from across the state attended the programme.
