The year 2024 will be remembered as the year, which laid the foundation for the Water Revolution in Madhya Pradesh. The efforts that began early this year finally reached the culmination with a solid foundation laid by the Prime Minister Shri Shri Narendra Modi.
The long-awaited Parvati-Kalisindh-Chambal river link project kindled hopes by the end of the year and the foundation stone for the country’s first National River Linking Project, Ken-Betwa, was also laid by the Prime Minister. These two projects will be milestones in ensuring equitable distribution and justifiable use of water resources, not only in Madhya Pradesh but across the country, and will serve as an example for other nations too.
The year 2024 has been a year of some important activities and achievements for Madhya Pradesh. Under the leadership of Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav, the state government completed one year in the office. Several radical decisions were taken, which will prove transformative in the future.
Encouraging Industrial Investment
The year 2024 was fruitful in terms of industrial investments. Influenced by the government’s industry-friendly policies and decisions, investors made substantial investments through regional industrial conclaves. Positive and encouraging changes have been noticed in State’s industrial investment landscape. For the first time, Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav took the initiative to bring industrial investments to various geographic regions. The regional industrial conclaves were organized with the vision of ensuring that industrial investments are distributed equally across the state rather than concentrated in a particular geographic area. The idea is that each region has its own unique characteristics and investment potential, which need to be strategically harnessed. This approach will lead to large-scale job creation alongside industrial development. In the coming years, the results of these efforts will be visible. Through 6 regional industry conclaves, investment proposals worth over Rs. 3 lakh crores were received. These investments will positively change the employment scenario. During Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav’s visits to the UK and Germany, investment proposals worth Rs. 78 thousand crores were received. Roadshows in Mumbai, Coimbatore, Bangalore, and Kolkata attracted proposals of Rs. One lakh crores, and the mining conclave in Bhopal received investment proposals worth Rs. 20 thousand crores. Thus, 2024 was an encouraging year for industrial investment, which will create significant employment opportunities while helping the State become an industrial hub.
Innovations and Recognitions
By the end of the year, Madhya Pradesh gained national recognition on several fronts. The state’s tourism sector received global recognition and was ranked as one of the most attractive tourist destinations.
The constructive use of information technology to increase accessibility and simplify public services proved to be a highly successful and commendable initiative with the launch of the Cyber Tehsils. This effort eliminated the possibility of human errors.
In a revolutionary step, the state also established a special Delimitation Commission for the reorganization of district administrative units. The Commission has started its work and based on its recommendations, district and division boundaries will be laid in the future, resolving many administrative challenges.
Madhya Pradesh also achieved remarkable success in revenue collection in 2024. This has been attributed to to increased trust between taxpayers, business groups, and the state government, fostering a culture of self-motivated tax submission. The government successfully resolved many pending revenue cases and rectified revenue records through the Revenue Maha Abhiyan campaigns 1, 2, and 3.
A major step in education was the launch of PM Colleges of Excellence in all districts. In the healthcare sector, the government took several unprecedented steps. The launch of the PM Shri Air Ambulance Service was a sensitive initiative to provide timely treatment by airlifting critically ill or accident victims from remote areas. The medical education and public health departments were merged to enhance work efficiency.
To promote the production of millets in the interest of farmers, the Rani Durgawati Shree Anna Promotion Scheme was implemented, providing farmers with a special incentive of Rs. 1000 per quintal.
At the beginning of the year, the government demonstrated its sensitivity and commitment to the welfare of the poor by paying Rs. 224 crore to 4800 worker families of the Hukamchand Mill in Indore. Similarly, efforts will be made in other cities like Gwalior to revive closed mills, modelled after Indore’s approach. In a historic move for tribal families, the first-ever Prime Minister JANMAN residential Colony came up at Shivpuri district for the Sahariya tribal families.
Spiritual Awakening
Year 2024 can also be called a year dedicated to cultural and spiritual awakening. Several important steps were taken in religious tourism and cultural revival. The PM Shri Religious Tourism Helicopter Service and the PM Shri Tourism Air Service were launched. The world’s first Vikramaditya Vedic Clock was inaugurated in Ujjain, giving the global community a chance to witness India’s ancient time calculation mechanism.
The task force for the preparations of Simhasth-2028 has begun its work. The Shri Krishna Pathay Scheme was launched to connect all the pilgrimage sites related to Lord Krishna’s life and deeds, and the construction of these sites has begun. The unique Vrindavan Gram Scheme was introduced, by which one village in each development block will be modelled as an ideal Vrindavan village.
A historic decision was taken to establish Gita Bhavans in all urban bodies, marking a revolutionary step in cultural resurgence. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam” campaign, Madhya Pradesh set a record by planting 5.5 crore saplings. The state also set several records, including a Guinness World Record for Kathak dancers performing together in Khajuraho, playing “Damrus” and 1500 artists altogether in Ujjain and tabla players performing “Vande Mataram” in Gwalior. On the occasion of Gita Jayanti, over 5000 vedik scholars and batuks together recited the verses from the Gita, setting another Guinness World Record.
( Author: Posted as Deputy Director in Public Relations Department, Public Relations Directorate, Government of Madhya Pradesh )
