This Article is From Aug 26, 2014

A Chief Minister's Unusual Message to Her Government: 'Freebies Don't Work'

A Chief Minister's Unusual Message to Her Government: 'Freebies Don't Work'

Vasundhara Raje has taken some strong, if unpopular, steps.

Bhadsoda, Chittorgarh: At Bhadsoda village in Chittorgarh district, Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje is conducting a surprise check at a panchayat building.

The building is locked. It looks dingy and dusty; the paint is peeling off.

"Buildings, buildings, buildings. Hundreds of buildings, because buildings are where you can make a buck," says Ms Raje.

"Now I am saying, no more buildings. Use the hundreds of old government buildings. Next time, people say we want a panchayat bhavan, you will make another one, because 20 per cent of that has to go into everyone's pockets," says Ms Raje.

Clearly, she is not in a mood to mince her words.

This is part of Ms Raje's 'Sarkaar Aapke Dwar' (the government at your doorstep) programme, where her cabinet moves out of Jaipur and finds its way into the villages of Rajasthan.

"Stop wasting government money, focus instead on income generation and skill development. Freebies don't work and freebies don't help," says Ms Raje.

Since the BJP came to power in Rajasthan after sweeping 163 of the 200 seats in the assembly, the Chief Minister has taken some strong, if unpopular, steps.

She has put an end to schemes - launched months before the Lok Sabha polls by the erstwhile Congress government -- that provided free lap tops, light bulbs and sarees. She has also put the Congress government's free medicine scheme under a scanner, restricting the number of beneficiaries. The list of the beneficiaries of the government's pension scheme and food security act are also being reviewed.

The Congress has criticised these efforts, with former chief minister Ashok Gehlot saying, "They are stopping every scheme under the pretext of reviewing".

But Ms Raje claims that the "wheels of government had stopped grinding" during Mr Gehlot's regime.

"What we are doing now is trying to get those wheels churning again. The government is top heavy, with a lot of highly-paid people not doing their job, "she says.

But will Brand Rajasthan under Ms Raje be able to deliver? Her supporters as well as detractors eagerly await the answer.
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