Uttar Pradesh: Yogi Adityanath scraps Samajwadi pension yojana; Cycle tracks may also be broken, say sources

New Delhi: The Chief minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath has scrapped the Samajwadi Pension Scheme of the previous SP government. Yogi has also directed the officials to conduct an inquiry to find out whether those getting benefits under the scheme were eligible for pension or not and asked them to submit the report within a month. The CM took the decision during the presentation of various schemes and programmes being run by social welfare department. Yogi directed the officials to verify the beneficiaries of all such schemes and programmes and link them with schemes of the Central government so that they could be implemented effectively. Interestingly, the CM has asked the officials to present a proposal in the cabinet after reviewing the schemes and programmes to double the monthly amount of the pension given to physically challenged, widows and old age persons. It may be recalled that last year, the Akhilesh Yadav government had launched the Samajwadi Pension Scheme. The aim was to provide Rs 500 per month to poor women and cover at least 50 lakh beneficiaries in UP. The new CM of the state has also said the possibility of organising mass marriages of scheduled castes girls should be considered as it would encourage dowryless marriages. He ordered to rename SP government's Shaadi Anudan Yojana as Kanyadan Yojana. Yogi has ordered that deficiencies in the scholarship schemes for scheduled castes students must be removed and officials must ensure that no complaint is received about this scheme. The CM also clarified that before granting financial assistance to victims of physical violence and exploitation, it should be ensured that this facility will not be misused. Only after filing of the charge-sheet, help to the victim should be given, CM said. To help people belonging to Tharu tribe and also other tribes living in various districts of the state, Yogi asked the officials to formulate a special welfare scheme and also make arrangement for education of their children. Cycle tracks may be broken in UP, say sources: Cycle tracks may also be broken in UP, said sources. Cycle tracks in the state was a project to make regions of the state bicycle-friendly. The work began with a scheme in Lucknow. The proposal was that the completed project will give the city the largest cycle path network in India, covering up to 270 kilometres. The ex-Chief Minister of UP, Akhilesh Yadav, visited Amsterdam in September 2014. He observed that cycling was a common mode of transportation in the Netherlands. After coming back, instructed officials in to plan cycling corridors in order to take a greener approach to transportation. On 1st March 2015, the first cycle track in Lucknow was inaugurated at Kalidas Marg.