PM's I-Day speech: Some promises

Mobile telephony in Kashmir

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Friday in his Independence Day speech announced that mobile telephony in the border state of Jammu and Kashmir will commence from next week.

The state was deprived of all the action in mobile telephony -- that revolutioned communication in the rest of the country  -- because of terrorist activities in Kashmir.

Indian spacecraft to moon

The prime minister said India will send a spacecraft to moon before 2008. The mission, he said, will be called 'Chandrayan Pratham.'

River linking project by year-end

The ambitious project to link all major rivers of the country will start by the end of this year, the prime minister promised. While the first project will link the Ken and Betua rivers in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, the second will connect the Parvati, Kalisindh and Chambal rivers in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

National commission for farmers

A National Farmers Commission will be set up soon. In his I-day speech the prime minister also called for a "food revolution" aimed at doubling the income of peasents.

Citing the success of Kisan Credit Cards, Vajpayee said that similar cards would be issued to artisans, weavers and
fishermen to provide them credit at 9 per cent in tandem with a focused insurance scheme for them.

'Akshaya Patra' scheme

The prime minister announced an ambitious 'Akshaya Patra' scheme to provide mid-day meals to students up to standard V across the country, which would be later extended to pupils up to standard X.

More 'AIIMS'

He said under the prime minister's 'Swasthya Suraksha Yojana', six hospitals on the lines of Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences would be set up across the country over the next three years.

Provision for Urban Amenities in Rural Areas

Aiming to bridge the rural-urban divide, PURA involves identification of rural clusters with growth potential and creating four types of connectivities for them -- road, transportation and power connectivity; electronic connectivity in the form of reliable telecom, Internet and IT services; knowledge connectivity in the form of good educational and training institutions and market connectivity that enables farmers and others to get the best price for their produce.

Rural Employment Generation Programme

The government will make more funds available to the Rural Employment Generation Programme and over 20 lakh new employment opportunities will be created in the next four years.

The government would also launch a new group insurance scheme for workers in the Khadi sector.