Arunachal Pradesh Governor J P Rajkhowa today said that the new Kalikho Pul government would ensure transparency and accountability with good governance set to become the core of every public institution.
In his address to the Assembly, which saw Pul winning the motion of confidence, the Governor said in order to ensure transparency, the people would be empowered to call to account all public institutions through feedback forms, suggestion boxes and public meetings with ministers and senior bureaucrats.
"A proposal is also there for enacting a Bill for timely delivery of public services," he said.
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"In order to take our government to the door steps of the people, we will like to set up a well equipped office with a few secretarial staff in every block, circle of the state so that none is required to visit the capital for any work," the Governor said.
The nodal officer in each block will act as a medium between the citizen at the grass root level and the government at the capital, he said, adding decentralisation is a must when the state is yet to have proper connectivity.
Rajkhowa said until infrastructure is developed adequately, the government would like to connect blocks through internet.
He said, as far as public finances of the state are concerned, the government would make every effort to curb financial profligacy. Wasteful expenditure would be identified, minimised and eliminated.
Funds would be basically deployed for creation of assets and human resources.
"A permanent Public Finance Watchdog Committee will be constituted to advise on augmenting receipts as well as on rationalising expenditure to function as an Emergency Lamp for the government so that errors are culled out when just being committed," he said.
"On the developmental front, our Government will make substantial allocations for education, health, sanitation, urban development, handloom and handicrafts, horticulture, tourism, water supply, rural development, police, power, roads, drinking water, agriculture and irrigation besides a host of other sectors and sub sectors.
"As far as fund devolution is concerned, our government will ensure equitable distribution of resources - from state capital to all districts, from districts to all blocks and from blocks to all villages," he added.
There would be de-centralisation of public funds from the capital to the grass roots, he said, adding the government would also undertake a serious review of the fund flow to urban and rural local bodies for making appropriate course corrections.
(Reopens CES 15)
Rajkhowa said Arunachal Pradesh is now almost 100 per cent dependent on central funding as its own resources are meagre.
"This needs to be augmented in a phased and imaginative manner," he said, adding the economic development of the state, however, cannot compromise the traditional and customary structure of the society.
He noted that a harmony needed to be built between economic development and the preservation of indigenous culture.
"Our government is therefore desirous of setting up a single window clearance mechanism for encouraging investments in micro, small, medium and large scale enterprises in the state," he said.
The mechanism for clearing major proposals will be called Arunachal State Investment Board with two tiers of decision making with a small bureaucratic apparatus at the top which will have a ministerial body to ultimately clear investment proposals.
Periodic roadshows will be organised in the national and other state capitals as well as in Arunachal to garner investment proposals and specialised agencies will be entrusted with the task of bringing in investment to all districts in almost all sectors, mostly non-polluting ones, the Governor said.
The government would lay special emphasis on 'Clean Arunachal'.
"Funds will be specially allocated to achieve this end. While we keep the state absolutely clean, we must also keep our minds away from pollutants like ethno centrism, sectarianism," Rajkhowa said, adding the government will institute a special 'Tribal Harmony Fund' for catering to youth programmes to sensitise the people by "tribal secularism".
Rajkhowa said Arunachal History and Heritage Commission would be appointed to compile basic information on matters related to heritage and history of the state.
"Our government is seriously interested in District Women Commissions being constituted so that they not only work as district branches of the State Women Commission but also lessen the burden of the apex body," he said.
The Governor said it was time to identify archaic laws for phasing them out and also to refresh the legislative regime with fresh people-centric and workable laws and rules. The government therefore proposed to appoint a new state Law Commission and institute a State Human Rights Commission to do away with human rights violation.
He said youth should be motivated to participate in 'Make in Arunachal' programme and a 'Make in Arunachal Fund' would be constituted to promote productive ventures and token loans provided to credible entrepreneurs.
"Our government will also take up Special Programmes for Skill Development of the unemployed youth," he said.
Stating that an Expert Task Force would be constituted for identifying, planning and organising employment generation schemes, Rajkhowa maintained the government would give equal treatment to all districts and constituencies while sanctioning various developmental schemes.
