Click to play videoNew Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh may be politically surprised. His 15-point programme for the minorities is being implemented mostly in BJP states. And in states ruled by so-called secular parties, like Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, the same programme has largely been a non-starrer.
The Prime Minister’s initiative was seen as one of the flagship programmes of the UPA. But six months on, the report card on the implementation of the mammoth programme has been placed before Singh and it paints a dismal picture.
It shows UPA-ruled states are way behind states run by the NDA when it comes to implementing minority welfare schemes.
The Centre sponsors nine major schemes under the 15-point programme. The Union Government provides funds for all these schemes and the onus of implementation lies with the states. There is also a half annual review of the fund that have been utilised.
The report says BJP-ruled states like Gujarat, Rajasthan and Uttaranchal performed well by meeting more than 50 per cent of the targets set.
Meanwhile, NDA-ruled Orissa and Karnataka, which till recently had a BJP-JD(S) government, are also in this category. Even Mayawati's Uttar Pradesh has taken good care of the minority population.
Only two UPA-ruled states, Tamil Nadu and Haryana, figure in the list of good performers. The list of worst performers include West Bengal, Congress-ruled states with a large minority population like Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Goa. Punjab is the only blot in the NDA's record.
Over half the states do not even have a monitoring committee to oversee the implementation of the ambitious programme, which is expected to play a major role in the fortunes of the UPA in the run up to parliamentary elections.
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