New Delhi, Feb 4 (PTI) BJP MPs on Tuesday lauded the schemes of the Centre and stressed that national security has been strengthened under the party-led government, as they participated in a debate in the Rajya Sabha on the Motion of Thanks to the president's address.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs mentioned schemes, such as the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), Ujjwala Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission, as game-changers for the poor.
Participating in the debate, BJP MP from Haryana Rekha Sharma lauded the Narendra Modi government's handling of India's defence.
The former chairperson of the National Commission for Women said she is married to a retired Army officer and recounted her experiences.
"Most do not know that I am a proud wife of a retired Army officer.... I got married to an officer who was mostly posted in field areas like Sikkim, Leh, Siachen and the Myanmar border in Arunachal," she said.
"I mostly stayed in separated family accommodation in those days as all the stations were not developed. There was no electricity, no roads and no schools for children. Whenever I visited my husband, I lived in the field area. We had petromax for light, diesel for Bukhari heaters to heat up the room and food was just tinned food.... No fresh ration was provided to the Army in far-flung areas," Sharma said.
"Salaries were meagre, many a times we took help from our families. The salary of my husband when he took premature retirement after serving for 24 years was not even half of the pension he is getting after OROP. What was stopping the Congress government from giving OROP for so many years? Only Prime Minister Modi thought of giving OROP," she added.
"In our times, a letter from Siachen or Doklam used to take 20 days to travel one way. One could communicate in 40 days. My husband stayed on glaciers for seven months without any leave. When he came back, my daughter could not recognise him," Sharma said.
Talking about the situation at the time of the 1962 India-China war, she said, "The government was misled by the mere slogan of 'Hindi Chini bhai bhai'. It was not prepared for a war, while China was well prepared." "India had no strategy, no artillery to back the troops, the arms were old, ammunition was too less...," Sharma said.
"Only and only one man was responsible for the blunder and that was (former prime minister) Jawaharlal Nehruji," she added.
"Now let us compare (the situation back then) with the surgical strikes of 2016.... Dushman ko ghar mein ghuske aisa mara ki unko samajh nahi aaya ki kya hua (we attacked the enemy in its own house and it could not understand what happened)," Sharma said, stressing that this is better expressed in Hindi.
It could only be possible because a strong leader was there to lead from the front, she added.
"In the Galwan valley, Colonel Santosh from my regiment, which is the Bihar Regiment, taught a tough lesson to Chinese encroachers in a fierce hand-to-hand battle...," Sharma said.
She also described the Agnipath scheme for short-term military recruitment as a "national game-changer".
Sumer Singh Solanki, a BJP MP from Madhya Pradesh, said the Centre is working towards making the youngsters, women, poor people and farmers of India self-reliant.
"The governments that ruled the country for 60 years did nothing to provide housing to the poor, they did not make roads to their villages, did not provide drinking water...," he said.
Solanki also accused the previous governments of using tribals as vote banks.
"Earlier, governments used tribals only as vote banks. They are still doing the same. Our sister from Odisha has been elected as the president. What opposition leaders have said about her is not hidden," he said, in an apparent reference to former Congress president Sonia Gandhi's "poor thing" remark on President Droupadi Murmu, which has stirred a controversy.
Solanki also mentioned key central schemes, including Ayushman Bharat, Vande Bharat trains and various initiatives for farmers.
BJP MP from Rajasthan Chunnilal Garasiya and his party colleague from Chhattisgarh, Devendra Pratap Singh, also lauded the Centre's schemes and laid emphasis on three crore more houses to be constructed under the PMAY-Gramin.
Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP Masthan Rao Yadav Beedha said the synergy between Prime Minister Modi and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has proved to be a boon for the southern state.
As Beedha stood up to speak, the chairman said he has five minutes. The TDP MP asked for 10 minutes to be given to him.
"Give more time to speak. We have two MPs. Even parties with one MP have been given 15 minutes," he said.
Beedha said Naidu's vision aligns with Modi's vision for a developed India. He also attacked the YSRCP and said the political shift in Andhra Pradesh reflects people's demand for accountable governance. PTI AO RC