'Our people are on the march'

The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act marks a new beginning in our country towards guaranteeing the right to work. The Act, initially covering 200 less developed districts, holds revolutionary potential to alter the rural economy by providing a safety net to the poor. It will also enable creation of assets. It is for the first time in the world that a major employment programme is being undertaken on such a scale and its progress would be keenly watched by observers of development all over the world. The Union, State and local governments and Panchayati Raj Institutions need to work together for the success of this programme. A major people’s programme for water conservation will be linked to this programme.

Bharat Nirman is a time-bound plan for providing basic infrastructure in our rural areas. This flagship programme of my Government will, by the year 2009, seek to:

Provide electricity connection to every village in the country;

Provide an all-weather road to every habitation of over 1000 population and above, or 500 in hilly and tribal areas;

Provide every habitation a safe source of drinking water;

Provide every village a telephone connection;

Create 1 crore hectares of additional irrigation capacity;

Construct 60 lakh houses for the rural poor.

Building on the on-going schemes and large additional investments that are being channelised to this effort, Bharat Nirman will impart a sense of urgency to these goals by making the programme time-bound, transparent and accountable. These integrated investments in rural infrastructure will unlock the growth potential of rural India and Provide Urban Amenities in rural areas (PURA)

A National Rural Health Mission has been launched with the intention of providing universal basic health care to our people. The Mission, based on contextual, district level plans based on local priorities, will enable health care delivery in a manner which meets local needs. It will also link action in health care with complementary efforts in areas such as safe drinking water, sanitation and nutrition. In addition to upgradation of all Primary Health Centres, two community health centers in each district will be improved in the first phase to a level as defined through Indian Public Health Standards.

The Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission is the single largest initiative since independence for the development of our cities. The Mission, covering 63 cities, will enable their comprehensive development in the areas of urban infrastructure and basic services to the urban poor, linking new investment to governance reform. The successful implementation of the Delhi Metro project has generated demands for improved urban transport in many other cities. Plans for a Mumbai Metro and a Bangalore Metro are in the final stages of consideration.

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan has been strengthened and combined with a programme for universalisation of the Mid-Day Meal programme, which now covers 12 crore children. These initiatives should have a positive impact on the enrolment and attendance at school and on the nutritional status of our children.

My Government has taken several other steps in the realm of education to widen access and ensure excellence. The liberal funding of scholarships for students hailing from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe families, families of ex-servicemen and minorities will help improve the educational status of these disadvantaged groups. My Government has sanctioned creation of over 1000 Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas in educationally backward blocks of 21 States to provide free residential education to underprivileged girls at the upper primary level.

President Kalam watches the rich rice fields at the the International Rice Research Institue near Manila on Feb 5, 2006.