Priority is to tackle drought

By Lalit Shastri

RAIPUR, NOV. 1. The process of creation of Chattisgarh as the 26th State, by bifurcation of Madhya Pradesh, was completed with the swearing-in of the Governor, Mr. Dinesh Nandan Sahay, and the first Chief Minister of the new State, Mr. Ajit Jogi, here shortly after midnight last night.

In a fitting finale to the ceremony, a grand extravaganza, depicting the rich folk and cultural tradition of this State dominated by tribals, was presented. Folk singers and dancers heralded the birth of a new State. Classical singers and dancers kept the audience spell-bound.

Present to witness this historic event were Mr. L. K. Advani, Mr. George Fernandes, Mr. Arun Jaitley and other Union Ministers, the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr. Digvijay Singh, his ministerial colleagues, and the Congress leaders, Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad and Ms. Prabha Rao.

Earlier, Mr. Jogi was unanimously elected the Congress Legislature Party leader. Supporters of the former Union Minister, Mr. V. C. Shukla, a contender for the post, demonstrated their ire by trying to assault Mr. Singh.

Though Mr. Singh dismissed the incident, the fact remains that it has exposed the initial fissure in the Chattisgarh unit of the Congress.

The new State has 16 districts - Raipur, Dhamtari, Mahasamund, Durg, Rajnandgaon, Kavardha, Bastar, Dantewada, Kanker, Bilaspur, Janjgir-Champa, Korba, Raigarh, Jashpur, Sarguja and Koria. It has 11 parliamentary and 90 Assembly constituencies.

The new State is rich in minerals and forest wealth but a matter of serious concern is the rapid depletion of forests. The water table, in turn, is going down at an alarming rate.

The general condition of farmers in the region, known as the country's rice-bowl, is far from satisfactory as they follow the single crop pattern in the absence of proper irrigation facilities.

The major challenge for the new administration would be the recurrent drought coupled with utter backwardness linked with illiteracy, poor health and drinking water.

These problems are particularly severe in districts such as Bastar, Dantewada, Raigarh and Sarguja.

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Section  : Other States
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