For the BJP, Uttar Pradesh’s Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak is the new crisis manager. On the road to the 2024 electoral battle, Pathak’s people skills have often come to the BJP’s rescue, be in the Kanpur Dehat violence or Lucknow’s Alaya Apartment collapse. As the UP government gets set to present its budget for 2023 in the limelight of the Global Investors’ Summit, Pathak, in an exclusive conversation with News18, discusses investment in the state, what the new budget brings for people from all walks of life as well as politics by the Samajwadi Party.
Edited excerpts:
‘Crisis Manager’ is perhaps the new term coined for you. You are here, there and everywhere, especially when the government’s image is at stake. Be it the recent case of Kanpur Dehat violence, Lakhimpur Kheri violence, Hindutva leader Kamlesh Tiwari murder case, Lucknow’s Alaya Apartment collapse or others, you helped in tackling the situation with utmost perfection. How do you see this transition from a minister to the government’s image saviour?
I don’t think I did anything extraordinary. We are humans first and then politicians. Being a minister or the deputy chief minister of a state, it is our responsibility to share the pain of the people and pacify them in times of need. I did the same in the Kanpur Dehat violence incident too, where I personally interacted with the aggrieved family members through video call and thankfully managed to console them.
The Opposition alleges that in Kanpur Dehat’s encroachment drive incident, in which two women were burnt alive on February 13, FIR was lodged against SDM, cops and others but no action has been initiated against the higher-ups. What is your say on this? Will justice be done?
Yes, I promised the family members that the wrong doers would be punished. I will personally make sure that responsibility is fixed in the incident and action is initiated against the erring officers too. An SIT probe is underway, the guilty will be punished and all possible help and support would be given to the family members in this time of need.
According to the Opposition, the ‘Bulldozer Policy’ introduced to tame criminals and tackle the law and order situation in UP is being misused. In a recent Twitter post, Rahul Gandhi spoke of ‘dictatorship’ in context of the Kanpur incident. What is your take on this?
As I said earlier, no one will be spared. Be it the Kanpur Dehat incident or others, responsibility will be fixed and action will be initiated against the erring officers.
Uttar Pradesh is set to announce its Budget 2023. What will be the focus areas this time? Will it live up to the expectations of the common man?
Budget 2023 is going to be the most progressive budgets ever presented in UP so far. We are bringing a budget that will be for all and will ensure overall development of the state. It will cover infrastructural development of UP, women, include welfare schemes and policies for students, youths and farmers. It will be a common man’s budget.
The Global Investors’ Summit saw the signing of 18,643 MoUs worth Rs 32 lakh crore. Opposition calls it an exaggerated figure and an attempt to divert people’s attention from the government’s failures. What is your take on this?
Uttar Pradesh’s narrative has changed. During the previous Samajwadi Party (SP) regime, UP was all about mafia raj, high crime graph, crimes against women, riots, violence, kidnapping and dacoity. But, the scenario has changed. UP is now known for its skyrocketing growth and infrastructural development. We are number one in infrastructure; UP has maximum expressways, the country’s best rail network, most international airports and as many as 17 new are proposed.
Under Jal Jeevan Yojana, we are giving water connections to every households, we are constructing schools under Kayakalp Yojana, and work is being done on Anganwadi Kendras. We are number one in vaccinations and the infant mortality rate is on a decline. This is what new UP is all about. Hence, such remarks by the Opposition are just an attempt to malign UP’s new image.
What efforts would be made to make the whopping investment proposals worth Rs 32 lakh crore a reality?
We have assigned a Special Secretary-level officer for the purpose. The officer and his team will not only coordinate with the investors but will also make sure that they do not face any obstacles while investing in UP. In the next six months, we will hold a grand ground-breaking ceremony to celebrate the success of the summit.
How much investment has UP’s health sector attracted in the summit?
In totality, UP’s health sector received an investment proposal of Rs 54,000 crore. As the state’s deputy chief minister who is also entrusted with the health portfolio, I will make sure that the proposed projects hit the ground soon.
Health has always been a priority for the government. The Opposition is quite often seen blaming UP’s health department for poor services, especially in rural pockets. As the state’s health minister, how do you take such criticism?
These allegations are baseless. I must say that at present, UP has one of the best medical infrastructures. In 2017, when the BJP government first came to power in UP, there were merely 13 medical colleges. Currently, 65 medical colleges are under construction. Only 14 districts remain where medical colleges are to be established.
Other than medical colleges, we are setting up around 25,000 health and wellness centers in the state. There are around 9,000 health centers, over 1,000 community health centers, 92 district hospitals and super multispecialty hospitals. Hence, UP no more lags behind in health services. The government will ensure that the proposed investments take UP’s health services to new heights.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target to make India Tuberculosis-free by 2025. UP Governor Anandiben Patel in a statement said all officers and ministers should adopt a TB patient in order to make UP TB free. What has been done on the front so far?
Uttar Pradesh will become TB-free before 2025. UP’s health department is making spontaneous efforts to identify TB patients and make sure their adoption is completed. On my recent visit to Bareilly, I adopted around 56 TB patients. We are on the job and UP will soon be a TB-free state.
Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya’s controversial statement that objectionable language was used against Dalits and Adivasis in the Ramcharitmanas written by Tulsidas has created a stir. What is your take on the row?
Samajwadi Party is playing petty politics. UP is growing, it is excelling in all sectors. The BJP government has taken UP’s development to new heights unlike the previous SP government that was only known for its ‘Gunda Raj’. When Maurya was left with nothing, he raked up the issue. The statement was given to gain cheap publicity and nothing else.
Read all the Latest Politics News here
Comments
0 comment