Giving an introduction to the ‘commoner of a village’, Chief Minister (CM) Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu reached out to the residents of Dodra-Kwar – the remotest area of ​​Shimla district – during his visit on Saturday and announced that he would address the issue providing Other Backward Class (OBC) status to villagers with the Centre.

Kicking off the ‘Sarkar Gaon Ke Dwar’ programme, the CM said, “The state government will take up the issue with the central government to provide OBC status to the villagers of Dodra-Kwar.” Dodra-Kwar is the most remote area of ​​Shimla district, which has five panchayats and has a population of 8,000.

Sukhu also inaugurated the first ATM in Kwar which was installed by Himachal Pradesh State Cooperative Bank and laid foundation stones and inaugurated projects worth approx. ₹12 million.

On his third visit to Dodra-Kwar, the CM said, “The government is paying special attention to the rural economy as its own environment is rural. The state government is making plans to ensure that people in villages have money in their hands.”

“I am from a village and no one in my family has had any political training, so I understand the pain,” said Sukhu.

Taking a jibe against the BJP, the CM said that the BJP leaders are repeatedly spreading lies on the guarantees of the Congress party. Ever since ‘Operation Lotus’ failed and Congress party seats increased from 34 to 40, BJP has been misleading people by spreading misleading propaganda. He said confusion is spreading about the state’s economic status and new gimmicks are being offered.

He said work was on on a war footing to build a road to Jakha, which would be completed by December this year. The state government would also create a separate Zila Parishad for Dodra-Kwar so that the public representatives can convey the issues of the region to the state government in a better way. Sukhu announced that he would ₹1 crore each for the development of five panchayats in Dodra-Kwar.

The Chief Minister inaugurated the Gosang-Jiskun road built at a cost of ₹5.43 crore and laid the foundation stone of the Dodra-Chamdhar road to be constructed at a cost of ₹5.46 crore apart from the Gosang-Harli road to be constructed at a cost of ₹85 lakhs.

He announced to offer ₹4.5 crores for Bailey Bridge to connect Uttarakhand which will provide 12 months connectivity to Dodra-Kwar. He announced that he would provide full funding for two bridges to be built between Jiskoon and Jakha. He said that the 50 km road to be constructed from Ladrot to Dodra Kwar would be paved by October 2025. He also assured to provide adequate funds to complete the rest house of the Public Works Department which is being built in Kwar.

He launched Indira Gandhi Pyari Behna Sukh Samman Nidhi for Shimla in Dodra-Kwar and released Samman Nidhi for 12 months to 509 eligible women from 1st April. He released a quantity of ₹91.62 lakh to women beneficiaries and ₹45.45 lakh as six months pension at the rate of ₹1,500 per month to another 505 women in Dodra-Kwar, who are receiving social security pension. He said that under Indira Gandhi Pyari Behna Sukh Samman Nidhi, the state government has provided ₹18,000 per year to illegible women.

Sukhu also inspected the land identified for the civil hospital at Kwar and ordered to complete it soon.