Chhattisgarh: BJP's smartphone distribution scheme stopped by Congress
What's the story
In Chhattisgarh, the scheme of former Chief Minister Raman Singh to distribute smartphones to five million families in the state has been stopped by his successor Bhupesh Baghel, HT reports. Singh had announced the Sanchar Kranti Yojana (SKY), approximately six months ago, in the run-up for assembly polls. A telecom operator was tasked with distributing the devices to people's homes. Here's more.
Information
What was the scheme all about
The scheme was rolled out in May 2018 and the BJP government hoped to complete it by March 2019. A total of approximately 5 million smartphones were to be distributed to women in rural homes, of urban poor homes and to college students.
Decision
In meeting, new CM decided to halt the scheme
Baghel chaired a meeting related to the scheme and an IAS officer who attended it said there were questions which were unanswered. He said the allocation of tender to a particular company and other things in the scheme were under scrutiny. The Congress-led Chhattisgarh government released a press statement on Wednesday informing that no smartphones will be distributed as part of the scheme.
Details
Officer says the phones are facing some issues
The officer revealed two million phones are yet to be distributed and the scheme was stopped till the issue of tender is solved. "The other reason for stopping the scheme is some technical issues with the smartphones that have been distributed," he said. The phone had a picture of Singh and apps of the BJP which needed to be addressed, the officer said.
Reactions
BJP claims the new government is against progress in state
Another officer at the CM office said there were complaints regarding the phones. Few of them burst due to overheating, he claimed. But BJP cried conspiracy and said Congress was ensuring the state doesn't develop. "The scheme was for the development and welfare of people of Chhattisgarh but Congress did not want the progress of Chhattisgarhi people," he said.