Keeping to his maverick style, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi travelled from Bilapur to Raipur in the sleeper coach of the Intercity Express train during his visit to Chhattisgarh on Monday, interacting freely with the passengers.
Gandhi was in the poll-bound state to participate in an ‘Aawas Nyay Sammelan’ wherein he launched the ‘Chhattisgarh Grameen Awas NYAY Yojana’ at Bilaspur. After participating in the programme at Parsada in Bilaspur, Gandhi took the Intercity Express along with chief minister Bhupesh Baghel and Chhattisgarh Congress in-charge Kumari Selja, boarding in a sleeper class.
All through the 117-kms journey, Gandhi interacted with the passengers including women and children and asked them about their issues and demands. Among those with whom he interacted included some women hockey players, who put up a demand for a hockey ground and turf, sources said.
Gandhi also spoke to children and purchased chocolates and wafers for them from the vendors on the train. He also gave autographs to those who sought it and was seen moving around the train freely.
According to the original plan, Gandhi and other leaders were to travel to Bilaspur from Raipur on a train, but had to travel by road due to delay in train schedule. So, they decided to travel on the return trip by train. He was accorded a grand welcome by Congress workers when the train reached Raipur in the evening.
Interestingly, Gandhi’s gesture came on a day when the Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at his similar earlier actions of meeting common people on their ground, though without naming the Congress leader. At a BJP workers’ meet in Bhopal, Modi had said, “some Congress leaders who were born with silver spoons in their mouths consider the habitations of poor people as picnic and video shoot spots. They consider the farmers’ fields as spots for photo shoots. In the past and even now, they have always attempted to ridicule India’s poverty on an international platform.”
Modi’s reference was obviously to the farm visit of Gandhi in Punjab and his recent visits to the shops and working places of various sections of people like eatery owners, mechanics, coolies and others.
Chhattisgarh Gramin Awas Nyay Yojana
The scheme launched by Rahul Gandhi aims to providing houses to 10,76,000 families who do not own a house. The housing scheme by the Congress government is for those left out of the PM Housing Scheme (PMAY) and additional eligible families identified through socio-economic survey by the state government.
Gandhi launched the scheme and virtually transferred the first installment for house construction to 47,090 families identified through Socio-Economic Survey 2023 and to 6,99,439 families from the permanent waiting list of PMAY into their bank accounts.
House Sanction Letters were also distributed to 47,090 beneficiaries of the new housing scheme during the programme. Also, Rs 1 lakh each was transferred into the bank accounts of 500 beneficiaries of the "Mukhyamantri Nirman Shramik Awas Sahayata Yojana" (housing assistance scheme for construction workers). The leaders dedicated the 414 development projects worth Rs 669.69 crore to people of Bilaspur. The 2594 recruited teachers received the appointment letters, and 1117 beneficiaries received the forest rights documents for urban areas. Also, a self-help group-operated garment factory was inaugurated during the programme.