Focus has been on capex to build assets, create jobs: Rajasthan CM

He exuded confidence that the BJP will sweep the forthcoming seven Assembly bypolls in the state, overcoming the setback it suffered in the LS elections, where it could win only 14 of the 25 seats

In December 2023, BHAJAN LAL SHARMA, 57, a first-term legislator, was the surprise pick to lead the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Rajasthan. Sharma was in New Delhi to address preparatory meetings for the Rising Rajasthan Global Investment Summit, to be held in Jaipur on December 9-11, and spoke with Archis Mohan about the performance of his nine-month-old government. He exuded confidence that the BJP will sweep the forthcoming seven Assembly bypolls in the state, overcoming the setback it suffered in the Lok Sabha elections, where it could win only 14 of the 25 seats. Edited excerpts:

How do you assess the performance of your government in the past nine and a half months?
 

Our government was formed on December 15, and from the next day, we started implementing the vows we had made to the people of Rajasthan in our sankalp patra (manifesto) for the Assembly elections. On December 16, we set up a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the cases of exam ‘paper leaks’ and also established an anti-gangster task force. So far, 150 individuals found to be involved in these activities are behind bars.
 

We also delivered on our promises of providing cooking gas cylinders at Rs 450, increased the income support that farmers receive under the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, disbursed the first installment to 6.5 million farmers in the state, raised the emoluments for Aanganwadi and ASHA workers and for elected representatives of panchayats and urban local bodies by 15 per cent, and hiked the minimum support price for wheat by approximately Rs 125 per quintal.
 

What has been done to address the state’s water scarcity and power crisis?
 

We have taken steps to expedite the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP), which will provide water to our eastern districts. We have signed an agreement with Haryana to secure Rajasthan’s share of Yamuna water, initiated efficient rainwater harvesting in Udaipur, and prepared a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the interlinking of rivers within Rajasthan. As for the power situation, the previous Congress government didn’t make any efforts to improve it. We have signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) worth Rs 2.24 trillion to make Rajasthan a power-surplus state by 2027, ensuring that our farmers receive power supply during the day, not just at night as is currently the case, while domestic users and industry receive supply 24x7. We have pushed for solar power under the PM Kusum Scheme in rural areas.
 

What is the pending agenda?
 

We issued 33,000 appointment letters within weeks of forming the government and are in the process of filling another 90,000 government vacancies in categories three and four, such as drivers and safai karmacharis.
 

How do you plan to strike a balance between welfarism and capital expenditure?
 

Our government has focused on capital expenditure, aiming to create assets and jobs. We have announced nine greenfield expressways.
 

We delivered on our election promise of reducing value-added tax by Rs 7.60 per litre on diesel and by Rs 6.17 per litre on petrol. This reduction has helped reopen 350 petrol pumps in Bikaner, Hanumangarh, and Ganganagar, which had been shut for five years or more, and sales have quadrupled. Revenue has increased by Rs 1,400-1,500 crore.
 

The reduction in tax on aviation turbine fuel from 26 per cent to 2 per cent has spurred interest in opening flying schools in the state, such as in Kishangarh, with new ones coming up in Bhilwara, Amirgadh (Banaskantha district), Jhalawar, and Sikar. There weren’t any when the tax was 26 per cent. More cargo planes now land in Jaipur, one every couple of days. Airports are either being expanded, such as in Udaipur, or we have allotted land for the construction of new ones, including in Kota and Barmer.
 

What have been the highlights of the Rising Rajasthan Investment Summit?
 

We have signed MoUs worth Rs 12.5 trillion, primarily in renewable energy and cement, and there are still two months left until we host it in December. These investments should help create a million new jobs, including 400,000 government jobs. We have appointed 23 of our Rajasthan cadre Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers to reach out to investors in 23 countries and 19 of our officers to look for investors in states across India. I also held a meeting with IAS officers from other cadres who hail from Rajasthan, where they told me that this was the first such effort by a Rajasthan CM. One officer, who is now in Maharashtra, said he was a year junior to me in school.
 

We have identified land, approved work orders, and laid foundation stones for projects worth Rs 10,500 crore, including a film city near Jaipur. We will soon unveil new industrial and tourism policies, along with policies for a dozen other sectors. Some of our historic temples are being renovated, for which the government has allocated Rs 300 crore. 
 

We have also announced a ‘Maharana Pratap’ tourism circuit and a ‘Lord Krishna gaman path’ in collaboration with the Madhya Pradesh government.
 

You are a first-time MLA who was elected the chief minister. How has the cooperation been with seniors, including some of those who are Union ministers?
 

I have worked in party organisations for several decades and have had good relationships with all the senior leaders in the party. It continues to be so. I have received help from Union ministers Gajendra Shekhawat, Bhupender Yadav, Arjun Ram Meghwal, and guidance from Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla whenever I have sought assistance. I work on the Prime Minister’s tenet of ‘sabka saath, sabka vishwas, sabka prayas’.