Development of Punjab, top priority of SAD-BJP govt: Badal

Punjab government has formulated a number of welfare schemes for the holistic development of the state, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said today.
Badal said his priority was that every person in Punjab should get food and keeping the in view in mind, the SAD-BJP government had launched 'Atta-Dal' scheme a few years back under which the beneficiaries were given flour and pulses at subsidised rates.
To ensure that maximum possible people were covered under the scheme, the government has now decided to double the beneficiaries from existing 16 lakh to 32 lakh and even the rate of flour would be slashed to Re 1 from Rs 4 per kg, he said during 'Sangat Darshan' programme here.

The 86-year-old Chief Minister slammed the Congress led UPA government at the Centre, claiming that due to its wrong and irrational policies the agriculture has been ruined.
"The exorbitant hike in cost of agricultural inputs coupled with the non remunerative MSP of crops has broken the backbone of the farmers," he said.
Badal also claimed that the Congress has always meted out step motherly treatment to the state due to which it has lagged behind in the process of development.

"The need of the hour is to constitute the NDA government at the Centre (after the next Lok Sabha polls) with Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister of the country. The state will witness an era of unprecedented development and prosperity if Modi becomes the Prime Minister," he said.

Later interacting with mediapersons, Badal said that the problems of the Lambi assembly segment were different from the others parts of the state due to which the government was laying special focus on it.
He said that as majority of the area of the assembly segment was water-logged, the problems of the people could be understood after visiting each and every village.
The Chief Minister said the upcoming Tata Memorial Cancer hospital at Mullanpur near Chandigarh was a result of the persistent efforts of the state government.
Badal said that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has agreed to lay the foundation stone of the hospital on December 30.