Women Key To Rural Development: Dana Kishore

He reviewed the progress with officials and interacted with workers during inspection of works undertaken under National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and Jal Shakti Abhiyan — Jan Sanchay-Jan Bhagidari at Chinnakaparthi in Chityala mandal of Nalgonda district. He asked whether wages were paid on time and whether basic amenities were available at the construction sites.

He said the state government is prioritizing women’s welfare and announced that self-help group (SHG) women will be provided access to interest-free loans of up to ₹ 10 lakh. Grama mahila samakhyas buildings will be constructed with the aim of being completed by November. She added that SHG women will also be involved in running rice mills.

Stating that ₹ 870 crore has been allocated for the construction of gram panchayat buildings, he said all the works undertaken under the scheme will be completed by December. Gram panchayat funds should be used to solve drinking water problems in villages, he said, adding that measures have been taken to ensure that salaries of gram panchayat workers are paid on the first day of every month.

He said currently 16.20 lakh workers are employed under the scheme across the state and 1.20 lakh of them are in Nalgonda district. He praised the district administration for taking the lead in registering with the state under the employment guarantee scheme.

District collector B. Chandrasekhar, district rural development officer Sekhar Reddy and Zilla Parishad CEO Prem Karan Reddy were present.