PM announces initiative for model villages

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday announced a new initiative under which each MP would develop a model village in his area.

The "Sansad Aadarsh Gram Yojna" will be launched on the Oct 11 birth anniversary of political activist Jayaprakash Narayan, Modi said during his maiden Independence Day address from the Red Fort.

"If we have to build the nation, we have to start from the villages," Modi said, adding that each MP should select a village in his constituency and convert it into a "model village" by 2016.

"They can then convert two more villages into model villages before the next Lok Sabha poll (in 2019)," Modi said.

He said that MPs with urban constituencies, Rajya Sabha MPs and state legislators should also chose one village each.

The 11th of October is Jayaprakash Narayan's birth anniversary. On that day, we will share the blueprint with MPs and the states," said Modi.

Jayaprakash Narayan had led a movement in the mid 1970s for the resignation of then prime minister Indira Gandhi after the Allahabad High Court held her guilty of electoral wrongdoing. This had led to the imposition of the 1975-77 emergency.