GUWAHATI: Lok Sabha Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on Wednesday alleged that Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was following his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanaths in proposing a population policy which he called it “unscientific and outdated”.
Sarma had recently said that the state government will gradually implement a policy that will allow families with no more than two children to qualify for benefits under certain government schemes.
The Chief Minister does not look inside the state, even in the rural areas, where many changes have taken place over the years, but he blindly follows the policy proposed by Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh which can in no way be applied to Assam, said Gogoi. at a press conference here.
“Sarma speaks of an unscientific and outdated concept because people’s mindset has changed, educational and health institutions have improved, and the rate of population increase has decreased over the years” , did he declare.
The Chief Minister must adopt a scientific temperament and if he takes steps to ensure education, sanitation for all and the empowerment of women, there will be no need for a separate population policy, a said the MP from Kaliabor’s party.
“They may have made the correct diagnosis for the disease (increase in population) but the prescription they have adopted is wrong.
They should discuss with us because the country’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, always advocated a scientific approach to dealing with various issues,” he said.
It was through Nehru’s foresight that IITS, AIIMS and other scientific and research organizations were established in the country for which India continues to receive accolades across the world, he said. -he adds.
The Chief Minister of Assam had said that the proposed population control policy would not be immediately applicable to all regimes in the state as many benefits are offered by the central government.
On the issue of microfinance loans, Gogoi alleged that the chief minister had “committed fraud with women in the state”.
“During the assembly election campaign, the BJP leaders did not say anything about the conditions that would be made applicable but now they are talking about the eligibility criteria for the loan waiver.
They cheated poor women and how are they going to assess who can repay the loans when most are in shock from COVID and loss of livelihood,” he said.
Irrigation Minister Ashok Singhal had recently suggested that the loan amount would not be canceled if used after December 31, 2020 or turns into NPA family income is more than Rs 1 lakh , every member pays income tax and owns a car.
Opposition leader Debabrat Saikia had demanded that the state government remove all preconditions and waive loans to relieve poor women, as part of the BJP’s poll insurance.
Congress don’t want to do ‘politics’ on the issue but as an opposition party, we have a responsibility to make BJP accountable to the people and so we will help the concerned women to raise their voices and take action. appropriate against the government,” he said. .
Referring to Rupjyoti Kurmi’s recent resignation from Congress to join the BJP, Gogoi said the saffron party was only interested in “silence the opposition so that they can continue their illegal activities and trade unions”.
“The BJP wants to silence everyone, be it politicians, students or journalists, who question the party for its wrong policies and actions, but the Congress will continue to raise the voices and concerns of the residents of the state,” he said.
The BJP wants a “silent or absent opposition and an end to democracy by intimidating its opponents but we won’t let that happen”, Gogoi added.
Asked about a change in the party leadership, he said that after the assembly elections a high-level committee was set up to look at all issues and discussions were held with the leadership of the party. report on strengths and weaknesses and how to move forward by preparing a roadmap for the future.
“The report was submitted to the leadership of AICC and we were asked to focus on helping people who have been severely affected by COVID and the resulting lockdown,” Gogoi said.