Mamata Banerjee pulls up officers for slow development work

Siliguri: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday expressed concern over the slow progress of work on its ‘Kanyashree’ project for minor girls in north Bengal’s three districts and said she had information that beneficiaries were not receiving their dues.

Ms Banerjee was interacting with district officials in Siliguri at ‘Uttarkanya’, the mini-secretariat of North Bengal, to take stock of development projects in Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and Coochbehar.

“Kanyashree is the pride of Bengal. It has been acclaimed internationally. But the pace of implementation of the project is not up to expectations. Why is that so,” the chief minister asked the district magistrates (DM).

The project, launched by the state government in 2013, is a cash transfer scheme aimed at retaining girls in schools and discouraging them from getting married before they are 18. Ms Banerjee also asked the officials to keep vigil on border areas and take foolproof security measures.

She expressed concern over the challenges faced by tea estates in Alipurduar and asked the DM to resolve the water crisis in the plantations. “The Centre is doing little to help the labourers of tea estates, but we are committed to helping them. Solve the water crisis in the tea gardens at the earliest,” she told the Alipurduar officials. Ms Banerjee also asked the Chief Medical Officer of Health of Jalpaiguri to cross-check facts before taking action against doctors of state-run medical establishments.