1.5% of population grows 15% of foodgrains: M Venkaiah Naidu

The Vice President of India, M Venkaiah Naidu, on Tuesday lauded the rapid strides made by Haryana, the sacred land of Upanishads and Bhagvad Gita, in various fields, especially agriculture, sports and information technology.

Speaking at the closing ceremony of the year-long Swarna Jayanti celebrations to mark the Golden Jubilee celebrations of Haryana's Statehood at, Naidu said, "It is no mean achievement for a state having mere 1.5 per cent of the country's population producing 15 per cent of total foodgrains in the country."

Addressing the huge gathering, which included Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Rajya Sabha MP Dr Subhash Chandra and several state ministers, the Vice President had a special word of praise for the womenfolk of the state, who, he said, had defied all odds to achieve remarkable success in various fields, especially sports.

He urged the people to cherish, imbibe and protect the rich 'sanskriti' of the country and the concept of 'Bharatiyata'. In his address, Dr Subhash Chandra traced the glorious history of the region right from the times of Mahabharata to the present day when it has emerged among the top front-ranking states.

Describing Haryana as the land of 'Adhyatma' (spirituality) Dr Chandra praised the contribution of hard working and deserving people of India and especially thanked the Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government for making efforts to develop the State.

"I have seen Haryana grow since its inception in 1966 as a new state. Despite sitting close to capital Delhi, Haryana's condition was not like Krishna but like his poor friend Sudama. However, due to unparalleled industriousness, devotion and hard work of its people, Haryana has emerged as among the top states," said Dr Chandra. He also credited the Khattar government for the success of the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao campaign leading to great improvement in the skewed sex ratio.

Dr Chandra recalled that the word Haryana meaning House of God was used for the first time in 1328 A.D. It was on this very where the seeds of Indian civilisation were first laid and where Sri Krishna made the truth win, he said.

Drawing a road map to take Haryana to glorious heights, the Rajya Sabha MP asked the government to create at least 4-5 more urban hubs on the lines of Gurgaon and Faridabad and give impetus to food processing and textile industry to create jobs to the youth and expand its industrial base.

Giving a short synopsis of his government's achievements in the last three years, Chief Minister Khattar spoke about how his government had made Haryana an open defecation-free (ODF) state and implemented various central government schemes.

He also announced that Haryana would give lifetime monthly pension to the Hindi 'satyagrahis' and those from Haryana who were jailed during the Emergency. He also announced a hike in the financial assistance to veterans of the Second World War and their widows, and provide minimum 10 -hour power supply to the agriculture sector from tomorrow.