By Special Correspondent
Bhopal: Former Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Kamleshwar Patel on Tursday accused state government of failing rural Madhya Pradesh over the past two years, claiming that key welfare and development schemes had collapsed due to mismanagement and corruption.
Addressing a press conference at the Pradesh Congress headquarters, Patel said flagship programmes considered the backbone of rural development had been “systematically destroyed”. Referring to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), he alleged that not even one per cent of registered workers in the state had received the full 100 days of guaranteed employment, reflecting what he termed the government’s insensitivity towards rural labourers.
Patel also questioned a recent announcement by the Prime Minister regarding the transfer of Rs 179 crore to women beneficiaries in Madhya Pradesh, claiming that no money had actually reached their accounts and that the exercise was limited to political publicity.
Highlighting the plight of women under the State Livelihood Mission, he said fewer than two per cent had access to employment, while six nutrition food units launched under the mission had failed due to alleged corruption. He linked these failures to worsening social indicators, including high infant and maternal mortality rates.
The former minister further alleged large-scale irregularities in schemes such as “Ek Bagiya Maa Ke Naam”, pending payments under Swachh Bharat and Sambal Yojana, and the weakening of gram sabhas. Patel said the Congress would intensify its agitation against what it called anti-rural policies of the state government.
