NEW DELHI, Aug 30:
Facing stiff resistance on the Land Acquisition Bill, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today announced that the Government will not re-promulgate the Ordinance which expires tomorrow and declared readiness to accept any suggestions to benefit the farmers in the pending bill on it.
Apparently referring to the political opponents, he said lot of misapprehensions had been created over the Land bill and fear was instilled among the farmers, even though States had suggested amendments to the Act of 2013 for the benefit of villages and villagers.
“I have said it earlier also. The Government has an open mind on the Land Acquisition Bill, about which there is a lot of controversy. I have said it again and again that I am ready to accept any suggestion for the benefit of farmers,” Modi said in his monthly radio program ‘Mann Ki Baat’.
“We had promulgated an Ordinance on Land Acquisition Bill which will expire tomorrow. I have decided that it should be allowed to expire. It means restoration of the situation that prevailed before my Government took over,” the Prime Minister said, while insisting that the voice of farmers mattered the most to him.
The Government had issued the Ordinance thrice so far as the Land bill could not be passed in Parliament due to stiff resistance by most of the opposition parties as well as some ruling NDA allies.
Modi, during his 20-minute address, maintained that the suggestions for “improving” upon the Land Act of 2013 had come from States who believed that for the welfare of farmers, there should be canals to bring irrigation water, electric poles for electricity, roads, houses and poor villagers should get work and “we should free this law from the clutches of the bureaucracy”.
However, after the Government brought the land bill, “a lot of misapprehension was created and so much of fear was instilled among the farmers. The farmers should neither have doubts nor have any fear and I will not give any such opportunity to anybody. … Now there is no cause for any doubt and if anybody tries to create fear, you should not be scared,” he said.
Modi said the Government had incorporated 13 aspects of village development in the Ordinance for the welfare of villages but the matter got complicated because of controversies.
Now, since the Ordinance is being allowed to expire, the Government notified rules for these 13 aspects which will come into effect from today to address this “incomplete work”.
“We are doing this so that the farmers do not stand to lose, including financially,” the Prime Minister said.
“I want to assure the farmers that for us, ‘jai jawan, jai kisan’ is not just a slogan but our ‘mantra’. That is why I announced creation of a Ministry for Farmers’ Welfare during my Independence Day address,” he said.
Government, in a bid to wriggle out of the contentious land ordinance, could use a clause to remove difficulty to bring 13 central acts under the ambit of land acquisition law without going in for a fresh executive order.
Sources earlier said the Rural Development Ministry approached the Attorney General to seek his views on whether the clause on removal of difficulties may be used to include the 13 acts, which were kept out of the ambit of the Land Acquisition Act 2013 when the law was passed during UPA rule.
The AG is learnt to have given its opinion in which it has said that this was possible.
In his radio address, the Prime Minister also talked about social security schemes like Jandhan and Suraksha Yojana, launched on Raksha Bandhan day yesterday, and said he was happy to note that these had received acceptance in a short span of time.
Referring to the Suraksha Bandhan insurance scheme, he said he had broadly come to know that 11 crore families have got associated with it, half of them being women.
With regard to Jandhan scheme launched a year ago, he said 17.74 crore accounts have been opened with deposits of Rs 22,000 crore.
To ensure financial inclusion of the poor, the concept of ‘bank mitra’ (friends of bank) was encouraged and today 1.25 lakh such people were working to include those in the banking network who have been outside the financial system, Modi said, adding that in this process, jobs have also been created.
“Apprehensions were being expressed whether what could not be done in the last 60 years, could be done within one year. This has been made possible by the hard work of several departments, Ministries and banks, he said, adding he was happy to see the results.
He said thousands of jandhan account holders had now become entitled for overdrafts and many are getting money.
The Prime Minister asked jandhan account holders to ensure that their association with banks never ends. “I have brought the banks to you, now it is upto you to keep holding to these by keeping the accounts active,” he said.
He also referred to the 50th anniversary of 1965 war and hailed the armed forces as well as Lal Bahadur Shastri.
Modi urged youth to have scientific temper and go for research. (PTI)
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