Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 25 Nov: Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami today honoured the winners of the State Government’s ‘Bill Lao, Inaam Pao’ scheme at a function organised at his Official Residence here. A total of 1,888 consumers emerged as prize-winners under the scheme, which was operational from 1 September 2022 to 31 March 2024. Addressing the gathering, CM Dhami congratulated all the winners and observed that every participant in the scheme has contributed to generating a new consciousness, a fresh outlook and renewed energy towards revenue collection in the State. He described the initiative, launched in 2022, as a unique innovation by the State Government to link public participation with revenue mobilisation and added that the scheme has effectively created widespread awareness among people over the past three years.
Dhami also observed that the scheme has helped citizens understand that every bill they ask for is, in fact, a contribution towards Uttarakhand’s development. He said that the initiative has not only become a dynamic tool for promoting consumer awareness but has also evolved into a symbol of shared responsibility between the consumer and the trading community. He added that the ‘Double Engine’ Government led by the Prime Minister has ensured that traders receive protection as well as incentives and profit. Echoing similar efforts at the State level, he said the Government is working to create a conducive environment for investment and entrepreneurship through ‘Ease of Doing Business’ and the ‘Business Reform Action Plan.’
Dhami also asserted that the Government has firmly established fiscal discipline in Uttarakhand, as reflected in the State’s success in keeping the fiscal deficit within the prescribed limits. These efforts, he noted, have earned national recognition, with a recent report from the Arun Jaitley National Institute of Financial Management placing Uttarakhand among the States with the best financial management. The CM claimed that when the public trusts the Government and the Government, in turn, deals transparently with the public, the pace of development naturally accelerates.
Addressing the event, Principal Secretary RK Sudhanshu stated that 90,000 consumers took part in the scheme by submitting 6.5 lakh bills amounting to Rs 270 crore. Tax Commissioner Sonika added that a total of 1,888 people were awarded prizes under the scheme and that 1,500 monthly prizes were also distributed over 17 months. MLA Sarita Kapoor, Principal Secretary RK Sudhanshu, Tax Commissioner Sonika, Additional Commissioner Anil Singh and other officials were present on the occasion. The prizes distributed included two EV cars, sixteen Maruti Alto K10 cars, twenty EV scooters, fifty bikes, one hundred laptops, two hundred smart televisions, five hundred tablets and one thousand microwaves.
