Lehragaga, September 27:- Punjab Cabinet Minister Barinder Kumar Goyal held an important meeting with leaders, office-bearers, workers and volunteers of the Aam Aadmi Party at Saurabh Complex, Lehragaga. During the meeting, he reviewed the progress of the party’s door-to-door and membership campaign and directed workers to take the report card of the work done by the Punjab government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann over the past four and a half years to every household.
Addressing the meeting, Barinder Kumar Goyal said the biggest strength of the Aam Aadmi Party is its hardworking workers and volunteers, who have always remained among the people and taken the party’s pro-people policies to every household. He said new members joining the party would further strengthen contact with people at the grassroots level.
The Cabinet Minister directed party workers to reach every village, every ward, every locality and every household and provide information about the development works and welfare schemes undertaken by the government. He said that along with direct interaction with people, their problems, opinions and suggestions should also be listened to seriously.
He said the basic principle of the Aam Aadmi Party’s politics is to remain among the people, establish direct contact with them and remain accountable to the people for the work done. In line with this approach, party workers and volunteers are reaching households across Punjab and placing the report card of the state government’s work over the past four and a half years before the people.
Barinder Kumar Goyal said that a special pamphlet-cum-report card is also being distributed to people as part of this state-level campaign. It contains details of the initiatives taken by the government in electricity, health, education, women’s welfare and other sectors, along with details of the savings accruing to families through these initiatives. He said the objective of the campaign is not only to present an account of the government’s work before the people but also to obtain their opinions and suggestions.
The Cabinet Minister said the Punjab government has included reducing expenses related to the daily lives of ordinary families among its key priorities. He said the provision of 300 units of free electricity per month has provided relief from electricity bills to a large number of domestic consumers. Similarly, the expansion of government health and education facilities has been an important effort to reduce families’ expenditure on treatment and children’s education.
He said financial assistance is being provided to eligible women under the ‘Chief Minister Mothers-Daughters Honour Scheme’. Under the scheme, monthly assistance of Rs 1,500 has been provided for eligible women belonging to the Scheduled Caste category and Rs 1,000 per month for eligible women from other categories.
Barinder Kumar Goyal said that according to an assessment carried out by the party, an average family in Punjab is receiving benefits of up to approximately Rs 1.82 lakh annually by combining free electricity, health facilities, education, financial assistance for women and other welfare initiatives. He said people should calculate their household budgets themselves and see how much their expenses have decreased due to these facilities.
The Cabinet Minister said the Punjab government has also taken important initiatives for the conservation of the state’s natural resources, particularly water. Work is being carried out at various levels to ensure canal water reaches farmers’ fields, reduce dependence on groundwater and ensure proper utilisation of available water resources.
He said the state government is working with full commitment for the overall development of the Lehragaga and Khanouri areas. Various development projects have been advanced to strengthen drinking water, roads, health, education, sports and other basic infrastructure, and no effort will be spared in the development of the constituency.
Speaking about the tenure of previous governments, Barinder Kumar Goyal said that in a democracy, the people are the ultimate decision-makers and have every right to assess the performance of every government. He appealed to people to compare the tenure of previous governments with the work done, facilities received and changes in household expenses during the present government’s four and a half years and form their opinion.
Rejecting allegations levelled by opposition parties, the Cabinet Minister said the opposition parties were making misleading statements to divert people’s attention from the government’s work. He appealed to people not to be influenced by any propaganda but to assess the performance of governments on the basis of their own experience and facts. He said the Aam Aadmi Party would keep its campaign focused on the work done by the government and the facilities received by the people.
The Cabinet Minister urged workers to take the campaign forward with mutual coordination and complete discipline, saying that the government’s report card should reach every village, every ward and every household. At the same time, people’s suggestions and problems should also be recorded and taken to the concerned level for their resolution.
Barinder Kumar Goyal said, “We are going to the people with an account of our work. People should compare the work of previous governments with that of the present government, calculate the facilities received by their families and the savings made, and form their opinion on the basis of facts. The centre of our politics is the welfare of the people and the work done for the people.”
A large number of Aam Aadmi Party leaders and workers were present on the occasion.
