Himachal BJP objects to renaming central scheme after Rajiv Gandhi

The opposition BJP in Himachal Pradesh on Sunday slammed the state government for changing the name of a central scheme and renaming it in the state after Congress leader and late former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Two schemes -- Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme and Energy Efficient Smart Street Lighting Programme -- were launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to save energy, Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar Dhumal said in a statement.

Dhumal -- a former chief minister from the BJP -- said these schemes were being implemented across the country under these names.

It was unfortunate that the Congress government in the state has changed the name of the Energy Efficient Smart Street Lighting Programme as Rajiv Gandhi Illuminating Scheme for Hill Town Advancement (RISHTA) to take political benefit, the two-time chief minister said.

As a tribute to Rajiv Gandhi on his 71st birth anniversary on August 20, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh launched the LED-based streetlight project in Shimla named RISHTA that aims to replace 63,484 lights in 56 urban development bodies.

Dhumal said the Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme should be implemented on the pattern of the CFL distribution scheme launched by the then BJP state government in 2008.

He said LED bulbs should be distributed free of cost to all electricity consumers in the state.

Poor consumers would not be able to bear the cost of LED bulbs as the cost of the monthly installment will be more than their monthly electricity bills, he said.