Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday claimed his government had created employment opportunities in Uttarakhand, trying to blunt the Congress’s charge of large-scale migration of youths from the mountain state in search of jobs.flok
Modi also countered the Congress allegation of corruption under BJP rule at the Centre, asserting his government had ended the practice of middlemen stealing welfare funds as was prevalent earlier.
The Prime Minister claimed that over 55 lakh pilgrims had visited Uttarakhand last year to do the Char Dham of Kedarnath, Badrinath, Yamunotri and Gangotri.
“The growth of tourism means the creation of job opportunities. Migration is a matter of the past in Uttarakhand. Now, we hear the news of start-ups in Uttarakhand,” he told an election rally in Rishikesh.
“Over 1,000 youths have launched their own start-ups here and of these, about 500 have been launched by our daughters.”
Modi said the youth of the state have been earning well because of the growth of tourism and the homestays, guesthouses, shops and dhabas they have opened with loans given by the government.
Congress campaigners have been saying that migration from Uttarakhand’s villages has increased in the past 10 years because of the failure of the BJP governments at the Centre and in the state.
Modi alleged that middlemen used to siphon off welfare funds during Congress rule but his government was directly transferring the money to the beneficiaries’ bank accounts. “Your money was stolen during Congress rule but Modi has stopped this. This is why they are angry and are making wild allegations against me,” he said.