The current central government is working towards building a developed India by 2047. Various public-friendly plans have been taken for this purpose, commented Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture Meenakshi Lekhi.
The MoS was taking part in a meeting today with members of various self-help groups at the Gourangnagar block office premises under the Unakoti District of Tripura.
She said that before 2014, the number of bank accounts of women, especially in rural areas of India, was very negligible. They kept most of their earnings at home. Prime Minister Narendra Modi focused on opening bank accounts for everyone, especially for the betterment of the socio-economic condition of women.
The benefits of this are also being felt by the poor people now. She said that the current government of the country has focused on making women self-reliant through the formation of self-help groups.
In the meeting, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs said various programs are being taken under the plan of making 2 crore lakhpati sisters through self-help groups in the country. The Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture has appealed to all concerned to extend a helping hand to make this plan a success.
She said that the central government has announced many pension schemes for people between 18 and 40 years of age in the country. Beneficiaries will enjoy the benefits of this pension scheme after the age of 60.
She advised the members of the self-help groups to take advantage of this scheme.
At the meeting, three self-help groups were presented with a cheque of Rs 3.4 lakh.
The central minister exchanged views with three lakhpati members and praised the work of self-help groups in Tripura.
State Minister for Social Welfare and Social Education Tinku Roy, District Magistrate of Unakoti district Rajiv Dutta, Additional District Magistrate L Darlong, Director of Information and Culture Bimbwisar Bhattacharjee were present at the meeting.
Before the meeting with the members of the self-help group, Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture Meenakshi Lekhi reviewed the work being done in Unakoti district under various projects of the central government at Unakoti Circuit House.
The meeting was attended by State Minister for Social Welfare and Social Education Tinku Roy, Sabhadhipati of Unakoti Zilla Parishad Amalendu Das, Rajiv Dutta, L Darlong, Bimbwisar Bhattacharjee, the Sub-Divisional Magistrates of Kumarghat and Kailashahar, and officials of various departments.
In addition, the central minister inspected the check post in the India-Bangladesh border area adjacent to the main town of Kailashahar, the check post in the India-Bangladesh border area in Srirampur, the house of Jayanta Debnath built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin project in Srirampur, and the Unakoti heritage tourist center.