Annual Plan West Bengal 1999-2000
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ANNUAL PLAN WEST BENGAL 1999-2000 Volume I DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT GOVERNMENT OF WEST BENGAL ANNUAL WEST BEN 1999-2000 VOLUME I CONTENTS Page Foreword (V) Introduction (xiii) SECTORAL PROGRAMMES I—Agriculture and Allied Activities 1-16 1.1 Crop Husbandry (Including Other Programmes) 3 1.2 Soil and Water Conservation 7 1.3 Animal Husbandry ■ 7 1.4 Dairy Development . 9 1.5 Fisheries . 10 1.6 Plantations 13 1.7 Agricultural Research and Education . 14 1.8 Co-operation 14 II— ^.Rurar Development 17-24 2.1 Special Programme for Rural Development 19 2.2 Rural Wage Employment Programme 19 2.3 Land Reforms _ 21 2.4 Other Rural Development Programme 22 III—Special Area Programmes . 25-30 3.1 Hill Areas 27 3.2 Other Special Area Programmes 27 IV— Irrigation and Flood Control 3 1 ^ 0 4.1 Major and Medium Irrigation 33 4.2 Minor Irrigation 37 4.3 Command Area Development 37 4.4 Flood Control 37 V— Energy 41-50 5.1 Power 43 5.2 Non-Conventional Sources of Energy 49 5.3 Integrated Rural Energy Programme (IREP) 50 VI—Industry and Mineral 51-71 6.1 Village and Small Industries 53 6.2 Industries (Other than Village and Small Industries) 61 6.3 Mining 71 (iii) Page VII—Transport 73-85 7.1 Civil Aviation 75 7.2 Roads and Bridges 75 7.3 Road Transport , 80 7.4 Inland Water Transport 85 VIII— Communications 87-89 IX—Science, Technology & Environment 91-95 9.1 Scientific Research (Including S & T) 93 9.2 Ecology and Environment 94 X— General Economic Services ^^7-103 10.1 Secretariat Economic Services 99 10.2 Tourism 101 10.3 Surveys and Statistics 102 10.4 Civil Supplies 102 10.5 Other General Economic Services 103 XI— Social Services JO-5-154 11.1 General Education 107 1 1.2 Technical Education 115 11.3 Sports & Youth Services 117 11.4 Art & Culture 118 11.5 Medical & Public Health 121 1 1.6 Water Supply & Sanitation 125 11.7 Housing (Including Police Housing) 130 ■■•11.8 Urban Development 135 11.9 Information & Publicity 142 11.10 Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribis ;nd . , Other Backward Classes 144 11.11 Labour and Employment 145 11.12 Social Welfare 149 11.13 Nutrition 152 11.14 Other Social Services 153 XII— General Services 1155-165 12.1 Jails 157 12.2 Stationery & Printing 158 12.3 Public Works 158 12.4 Other Administrative Services 164 XIII—Forestry and Wild Life 1'67-174 13.1 Forestry and Wild Life 169 (iiv) FCREWORD This is the third year (1999-2000) of le Ninth Five Year Plan (1997-2002). The proposals for the Annual Plan (1999-2000) have ben prepared, once again keeping in view the overall objective of the Ninth Plan in the State Wei. In formulating this overall social objctive and adopting the consequent steps, we have in W est Bengal followed an alternative app^ach— alternative of what is being followed at the national level. The overall objective has bt;n formulated in clear terms as one of increasing the em ploym ent generation, to the furthest extnt possible, through efficient enhancement of levels of proiductioni and expansion of services i all the relevant sectors within the feasible powers in the State. For attaining this objective, it, important to adopt two types of actions. First, there should be a move towards equal competitin domestically. Secondly, in known areas of market failures, relating to infrastructures and sojal services, there should be social action, and this social action should be. a« far as approprite, decentralised. This decentralisation, in its turn, should be dennocratically participatory ancaccountable, and it should be encouraged by giving m ore powers to the elected Panchayats amMunicipalities, and by ensuring involvement of the local people in formulation and implemetation of the plan schemes. Keeping these basic objectives of ]oductive employment generation and consequent courses of action in view, we have emphsised the following major areas of priority : (1) Land reforms and land utilisatin ( 2) Agriculture and cropping patter (3) Expansion of irrigation facilitie (4) Provision of improved seeds arl implements (5) Development of animal resourc, fishery and forestry (6) Improvement of roads and mas transport (7) Marketing and public distributin system (8) I ndustrial resurgence (9) Cooperative banking sector (I'O) Education (11) Public health (12) Development of Backward clases,, Minority communities and Women (1 3) Regional development of North ‘en gal, Western laterite districts and Sunderban areas' (14) Decentralisation and accoiuntabity' With these priorities emphasised, we hav giiven corresponding thrust and provided financial' allocation in the State Plan of the curre.it ^ar. For instance, land reforms provide the basis for ^ equal competition anid increase in produQom and employment generation in agriculture. We therefore have begum by ireaffinning oar peccial priority for land reforms. (V) Along with this priority for land reforms, it has become essential for sustaiiing the process of growth and employment generation in agriculture, to formulate afresh and vith a viiew firom the State as a whole, a comprehensive plan for cropping pattern for each district,block amd Giram Panchayat by involving through the Panchayats the local common farmer?. This plan for cropping pattern will be worked out by the first half of the next year, and wlile wortking out this plan, a special priority will have to be so accorded as to reduce for all the major c;rops the. gap between the State’s demand and the internal supply within the time frame cf the Ni:nth Five Year Plan (1997-2002). For implementing this plan of cropping pattern and sustaining the growth of empdoymient generation in agriculture, it is important to take a new initiative in expanding irrigation facilit ies. Towards this end, we have set the target of increasing the net agricultural area under irrigattion potential from 58 per cent in the current year to 66 percent within the Ninth Plan periiod, land have accordingly proposed to increase the total plan outlay for irrigation Sector from Rs. 359 crores in the previous year to Rs. 396 crores in the current year. In the sphere of irrigatiion, particularly for the minor irrigation projects, the responsibility of operation aid mainitenaince of these projects will remain with the local farmers through the beneficiary :ommitttees ;and under the general supervision of the Panchayats. In the management of these projec ts, isisue relating to water rate should be settled through discussion so that the cost of operattion mnd maintenance is recovered, and some revenue surplus is generated, out of which investment for new projects can be made by the same beneficiary committees. In the sphere of large irrigati on, the Panchayats will again be involved in coordination with the Irrigation and Waterways Department in setting up of beneficiary committees to help the management of water use at the ground level. Regarding certain important works, the Irrigation and W aterways Department nnay decide to avoid the contractors and implement the works directly through the Zilla Parishads, by providing technical assistance and involving the local people. For executing the plan of cropping pattern, it is also important to have, along with expansion of irrigation facilities, adequate provision of improved seeds. To this end, for attaining self sufficiency in the production of improved seeds within the State over the Ninth Plan period, fullest utilisation of the agricultural farms under the Department of Agriculture as well as areas under the Comprehensive Area Development Project will be necessary. Keeping in view this requirement as well as other related needs of the sector, the total plan outlay for agriculture is proposed to be increased from Rs. 43 crores in the previous year to Rs. 50 crores in the current year. In order that the small and marginal farmers can participate adequately in the sustained growth and employment generation in agriculture, on the basis of equal competition and by getting proper access to the use of improved implements (i.e. power tillers, pump sets etc.), it is considered important to take a new initiative in setting up under the leadership of small and marginal farmers the service cooperatives which can take the responsibility of local and collective use of these implements. The State Government will provide an assistance of Rs. 1 lakh for one such cooperative for each Gram Panchayat, and the members will contribute an equal amount and obtain, on the basis of that, loans from the cooperative banks. These service cooperatives should, from the very beginning, be so managed that some revenue surplus is generated, out of which new investment will be made by these cooperatives themselves. Keeping (vi) this total perspective in view, we have proposed an additional outlay of Rs. 34 crores for assistance to these cooperatives at the level of each Gram Panchayat. Along with the growth of production in agriculture, it is also important to enhance production in the allied sectors relating particularly to animal resource development, fishery and social forestry. If production is enhanced through adoption of appropriate technology and training by involving the local people through the Panchayats, then not only will the gap between the State’s demand and internal supply be reduced but substantial employment will also be generated. Keeping this objective in view, the plan outlay for these allied sectors has been proposed to be increased from Rs. I ll crores in the previous year to Rs. 129 crores in the current year. For augmentation of irrigation as well as development of agricultural, allied and industrial activities in the districts, and also for social purposes, it is essential to extend rapidly rural electrification so that 90 per cent of rural mouzas of the State are electrified by the end of the Ninth Plan.