Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday that the Central government will launch a scheme worth ₹24,000 crore for the welfare of tribal people on the occasion of Janjatiya Gaurav Divas, celebrated on November 15 to mark the birth anniversary of tribal freedom fighter and activist Birsa Munda.
“Tomorrow, the entire nation will celebrate the birth anniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda as Janjatiya Gaurav Divas. And the Central government is going to kickstart a very important scheme of ₹24,000 crore for the empowerment of the tribal community,” Mr. Modi said, addressing an election rally in the tribal district of Betul. Mr. Modi said he was going to visit Jharkhand on Wednesday to mark the occasion and launch the scheme.
Also Read | Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls | BJP goes easy over age, turns to warhorses to retain power
Mr. Modi’s announcement holds significance in Madhya Pradesh, where nearly 21% of the population is tribal. The State is going to the polls in two days.
The Prime Minister also referred to the election of Draupadi Murmu as the President of India as evidence of the BJP’s commitment towards the upliftment of tribal people. “Did we ever write in any of our manifestos that we will make an Adivasi beti (daughter) the President of the nation? We never wrote it anywhere but there’s a place for you in our hearts. That’s why, when there is a chance, the BJP values tribal pride. This is why a tribal daughter, born in a poor family in a village, Draupadi Murmu-ji is the President of India today and is leading the nation,” Mr. Modi said.
He also accused the Congress party of only “bagging the votes of the tribal community for decades by lying”.
“But they always deprived the tribals of basic amenities like roads, electricity, water, schools, and hospitals,” he alleged, claiming that the Congress never fulfilled its promises.
“You must remember the promise of farm loan waiver the last time [in the 2018 polls]. These people could not fulfil it even one-and-a-half years after forming the government. They kept busy in looting,” he said, adding that the BJP tried to deliver more than it promises.
Mr. Modi also took an apparent swipe at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on Monday remarks, in which the latter had said at a rally in Neemuch in Madhya Pradesh that people were using “made in China” mobile phones.
“Yesterday, a maha-gyani (highly learned person) from the Congress was saying that all people in India have ‘made in China’ phones. Arrey, moorkhon ke sardar (leader of stupid people)! What world do these people live in? Congress leaders have gotten a mental condition of not seeing the achievements of their own country,” Mr. Modi said without naming anyone.
The Prime Minister further said that India is currently the second largest manufacturer of mobile phones in the world.
“When the Congress was in power [at the Centre], mobile phones worth less than ₹20,000 crore were manufactured in India every year. Today, phones worth more than ₹3.5 lakh crore are made in India,” Mr. Modi said, adding that phones worth ₹1 lakh crore are exported from the country.
“The Congress now is flying on cloud nine. It does not see the poor on the ground,” he said.
Mr. Gandhi had said on Monday that he wanted to see “made in Madhya Pradesh” written on the electronic devices and other items.
“You see behind a mobile phone, behind a shirt or under a shoe. You will see ‘Made in China’ written there. Have you ever seen ‘Made in Madhya Pradesh’ behind any camera or a shirt? This is what we want to do,” Mr. Gandhi had said, adding, “I want that after our government is formed [in the State] the lakhs of youth here are not unemployed, they work in the factories.”
Also Read | Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls: Know the numbers from previous elections
As the polling date draws closer, attacks and counter-attacks between senior leaders of the two parties have increased. Mr. Gandhi has been targeted by BJP leaders’ over various issues, including the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Voting for the Madhya Pradesh Assembly’s 230 seats will take place in a single phase on November 17. The votes will be counted on December 3.
