As Chhattisgarh marks 25 years of its formation, Chief Minister and BJP leader Vishnu Deo Sai speaks to The Indian Express on the tribal state’s journey, its milestones and challenges, and the roadmap ahead. Excerpts:
What has Chhattisgarh achieved in these 25 years and what more does it aim to achieve?
There was a time when Chhattisgarh was untouched by development. There was starvation. People here survived on millets and mahua and sometimes slept on empty stomach. But in 2003, when Raman Singh became Chief Minister, he brought a beautiful Public Distribution System (PDS) and became famous as “chawal wale baba” in the entire country and today there is no starvation. This is our biggest development.
Under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chhattisgarh is today moving rapidly towards the resolution of a developed India. Chhattisgarh is now moving towards self-reliance in the field of industry, energy and minerals. Our state is today the nation’s second-largest power producer, is rapidly growing in steel and coal production, and has laid the foundation for a new tech economy by auctioning lithium blocks for the first time. Naya Raipur is being developed as the Silicon Valley and Education-Science City of Central India. Controlling Maoism and establishing peace in the sensitive Bastar region are major achievements.
A lot more needs to be done. We have a lot of forest and natural resources and fertile land. We want to increase irrigation facilities for farmers. We want to do a lot in tourism… Bastar is like heaven. The waterfalls, lush forest, national parks… We will push for home stay facilities. Our industrial policy has been created with an intent to create more jobs and we are working towards it.
* What memories do you have from the Chhattisgarh statehood movement?
At the time I was a first time MP. It was a great privilege to be in the Parliament when this Bill was approved in Lok Sabha. Our big leaders Lakhiram Agarwal, Dilip Singh Judeo, Ramesh Bais, Raman Singh (who were MPs) discussed this Bill and I have fond memories of listening to their discussions carefully in the Lok Sabha as well as the Rajya Sabha.
Since I come from the Jashpur region of Surguja, in undivided Madhya Pradesh, reaching the capital Bhopal required considerable time and resources. Chhattisgarh has its own culture and identity, which gave direction to the aspirations of the people. The greatest feature of this movement was its peaceful nature.
* Since the 1980s, Maoists brought their own social culture and mindset to Bastar. Amid a sharp decline in Naxal-affected districts with scores of Maoists having surrendered, how do you plan to negotiate with this mindset?
Those who started the Naxalite movement in Chhattisgarh actually brought an imported ideology. The ideology of our Indian culture and the tribal culture which is a part of it also, are completely different. This Maoist culture advocates for power change through violence, whereas the element of non-violence is fundamental to Indian and tribal culture. These people tried to bring Maoist rule in Bastar and the entire country for almost 40 years and tried to destroy democratic institutions by resorting to violence, but they did not succeed. Hundreds of people, who were forcibly recruited into the cadre by their top leaders, have now abandoned Naxalism.
Bastar has steadily changed and improved under BJP rule. Some areas of Bastar remained backward. Now, they too will join the mainstream. We have a clear roadmap for Bastar’s development and are rapidly implementing it. Bastar will soon be part of the mainstream.
* During the Raman Singh regime, a contract was signed between the government and Indian Railways to lay rail lines in the state. How much progress has been made on this front?
See, the expansion of railway lines since 2014 has happened very rapidly. Today, passenger trains have started operating on a large scale in Chhattisgarh. Lines have been widened, and passengers are directly benefiting from this infrastructure and will continue to do so in the future.
We have launched Vande Bharat Express. We are also starting new rail projects, such as connecting Kharsia to Parmalakasa…. Under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, 32 stations of Chhattisgarh are being developed as world class railway stations at a cost of Rs 1,680 crore. The Railways is working on projects worth Rs 47,447 crore in Chhattisgarh… This has made Chhattisgarh a key investment destination for logistics.
* What is you response to the criticism that while Chhattisgarh has opened a premier education university, its performance in providing quality school education has been poor?
Look, without a better structure for school education, you cannot create a structure for higher education. If school education had not improved then how would universities have opened here and where would students come from to study in these universities?… Yes, it’s true that during the five years of Congress rule, some shortcomings remained in the field of school education… We have adopted the National Education Policy.
You may have recently seen the report of the Parikh survey. Even in our tribal areas, children have made significant progress because we are teaching in local languages. We have initiated parent-teacher meetings. This has particularly benefited the children.
* Environmentalists allege that mining and industry have worsened pollution in cities and major rivers. What is your opinion?
If we look at the statistics of cities in Chhattisgarh compared to other cities across the country, the level of pollution here is much lower. During winters, you’ll notice that AQI, even in large cities like Raipur, hovers around 150. In metro cities, AQI can reach around 900. It is quite under control in Chhattisgarh.
* Whether it is the Bodhghat project or Nagarnar or Army Maneuver Range, local villagers fear insecurity and displacement. How do you plan to address this?
Whenever a big project is brought, the villagers are worried about what will happen to their rehabilitation after displacement and this is natural. But if their concerns are addressed properly, there is a way out. Whenever we develop a project, we first plan for rehabilitation. We assess this and only after a systematic rehabilitation plan is completed, we proceed with the project. There is dialogue with the people, Gram Sabhas are held and, in many cases, solutions are found in a satisfactory manner. Sometimes, there are some anti-social elements who create discontent among the villagers. It’s also our job to explain the reality to the villagers, and once we do, the problem naturally becomes easier to resolve. We have done this before and will continue to do so in the future.
* There have been several clashes between right-wing groups and Christians in the state over allegations of illegal conversion, which may escalate in the future. How would you defuse it?
Conversion is a social evil that attacks cultural identity. Not only tribal communities, but every class and community suffers from it. We are also introducing stricter laws to prevent conversion, and this law will be passed in this winter session. But more importantly, it is important to create awareness in society. People’s religious beliefs will not be allowed to be compromised in the name of supposed social service. People try to create divisions in society through religious conversions. This sometimes leads to communal violence. We are dealing with such forces firmly.