Assistance worth Rs 1,380 cr given to 1 mn poor in state: Gujarat govt

In all, 127 fairs for the poor were organised across the state, 115 were at village, town and taluka levels

The seventh edition of Garib Kalyan Mela, a state-sponsored programme for empowering the poor, ended on Wednesday with Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel disbursing means worth Rs 1,380 crore among 1 million poor beneficiaries.

"A total of 127 melas (fairs) were organised across the state of which, 115 melas were conducted at village, town and taluka levels while 12 major melas were held at municipal corporation level," said, a press communique issued  by state information department.

Close to 1 million poor beneficiaries were disbursed benefits worth Rs 1,380 crore by the state government, the statement said.

Assistance worth Rs 5.74 crore under Matrubal Kalyan Yojana, a programme for women, were handed over to 60,090 women beneficiaries, the statement said, adding that 1,93,842 beneficiaries were provided housing facilities under phase-II of Sardar Avas Yojana. The government provided assistance worth Rs 425 crore for housing.

For agriculture development and farming-related activities, 1,55,635 beneficiaries were provided instruments benefits to the tune of Rs 7,23,000.

The statement further said that in the six Garib Kalyan Melas organised from 2009 to 2013-14, 8.1 million poor beneficiaries have been given assistance worth Rs 12,004 crore.