Slew of Himachal schemes named after Vajpayee

Shimla: The Bharatiya Janata Party may not be going to the general election next year under the leadership of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, but his name still echoes in the hill state of Himachal Pradesh.

Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal apparently sees the former prime minister as an ace up his sleeve and has been launching scheme after scheme in the name of the veteran BJP leader.

One of the schemes, Atal Bijli Bachat Yojana, under which compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) will be distributed to people was launched just last week.

At the launch of the power-saving scheme in Kullu town, Dhumal announced that this town had been specifically selected because Vajpayee's house in Prini village is located near there.

"The hill state is indebted to Vajpayee who, as prime minister, provided all the support to speed up development here and approved some major projects like the multi-billion dollar Rohtang tunnel," Dhumal said.

Ahead of the launch, Dhumal and his politician son Anurag Thakur called on Vajpayee in New Delhi to seek his blessings.

"The Dhumals made it a point to inform the veteran leader that the CFL scheme was being launched from his native Kullu district," a senior official said, requesting anonymity.

Birthday gift

The government also announced that the CFLs would be distributed among residents across the state by December 25, Vajpayee's birthday.

In less than 24 hours of the launch of this scheme, Dhumal announced that an education hub would be set up near industrial town of Baddi. The Rs145-crore hub, too, has been named after Vajpayee - Atal Shiksha Kunj - considering his pioneering work in the field of literacy.