December 24, 2011
CM meets officials at Town Hall to take stock of law and order situation, releases Rabindra Rachanabali
The West Bengal Chief Minister Ms. Mamata Banerjee held a high-level-meeting at the Town Hall with senior excise and police officials, district magistrates to review the law and order situation in the state.
The Chief Minister various decisions during the meeting but the most important among them was an unique gesture towards those involved with the illicit liquor trade saying that the government will soon introduce a social-security-scheme as she was willing to bring them back to the mainstream. `Those who sell hooch are poor people, like the ones who died. The state government will be framing a welfare package for them. We want all these illicit liquor sellers to opt for mainstream occupations. We shall offer them (bootleggers) alternative livelihood, but operations against hooch will continue simultaneously. We shall rigorously conduct awareness campaigns against the sale of illicit liquor”, she said.
The Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also took an important decision by announcing a state highways authority on the lines of National Highway Authority of India (NHAI). `I have decided to constitute a West Bengal state highway authority in line with the National Highway Authority as we will be able to keep a close watch on the deteriorating condition of the roads and also take up the development, the condition of the roads are worse in rural Bengal`, added the Chief Minister. The state government, Ms.Banerjee said, had also decided on providing shelter to six lakh homeless and landless by making available three cottahs of land each under the ''own land, own house scheme'' by 2015. The Chief Minister instructed the district authorities to strengthen law and order in their respective areas and maintain peace. She also reviewed development projects, 100-day job scheme and food grain procurement projects. Ms. Banerjee said that several states already have their own road development corporations.
"We will celebrate this occasion again at this venue on that day. We have already decided that from now on, all historical programmes will be organized in Town Hall.” Ms. Banerjee said reminding that the national anthem was going to touch its 100th year on December 27. The Chief Minister released the first volume of the complete works of Rabindranath Tagore commemorating Tagore's 150th birth anniversary. "Its an excellent work done by the team. We want Tagore volumes to come out in all Indian languages. We would like to first start with the languages of the Hills and Jangalmahal. If not at one go, it could come out in other Indian languages in phases. I want Rabindranath Tagore’s writings to reach out to all in their language`, said Ms. Banerjee.
“On Republic Day, we will put up a Tagore tableau in New Delhi to reflect our culture. On Pochishey Baisakh, we will organize Rabi Tirtha in Rajarhat. We are also planning a Rabindra Complex in the surroundings of Nandan and Rabindra Sadan”, added Ms. Banerjee.
