New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted on Thursday that a transparent system put in place by his government, its honest efforts and an emphasis on people’s participation have led to nearly 25 crore people being lifted out of poverty in the last nine years.

During a virtual interaction with beneficiaries of the ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra’, he said that nobody could have thought that poverty in India can decline but the poor has shown that it can be if they are given resources.

Citing a recent Niti Aayog report, which highlighted the decline in poverty, Modi said India has presented a model to other countries in helping the poor and this has drawn global attention.

It is a very encouraging report, he said.

Modi said the yatra has met success beyond his imagination and his government is likely to extend its beyond January 26 due to an increasing demand from the masses that the vehicles meant to publicise welfare schemes and enlist more beneficiaries should visit their places too.

It has become a mass movement in two months and a study will find it as a great example of the last-mile delivery, the prime minister said. Asserting that no one will be left out of these welfare schemes, he said, “Modi worships and values people who were neglected by everyone” The yatra has already reached 70-80 per cent of panchayats and about 15 crore people have joined it, he said The ‘Vikas Rath’ has become ‘Vishwas Rath’, infusing trust among people that no deprived person will be left out of its benefits, he said.

More than four crore people have taken health checkups during the yatra and over 2.5 crore have been screened for TB, he said, adding that over 50 crore ‘ayushman’ cards have been given to people and nearly 35 lakh farmers have been included in the ‘PM Kisan Yojna’.

Neearly 25 lakh new ‘Kisan Credit Cards’ and 25 lakh free gas connections were given and 10 lakh new ‘SVANidhi’ applications received during the course of the yatra so far, he added.

He said these are not merely statistics for him as every number represents a life who was deprived of the benefits so far. The prime minister said he has always tried to ensure saturation of welfare schemes coverage.

He stressed his priority is to ensure good nutrition, health and treatment to people besides houses with availability of water, cooking gas and power connections.

He also underlined as to how crores of people have got bank accounts and opportunities to do something on their own.

Over four crore poor families have got a house of their own in the last 10 years and owners of 70 per cent of them are women, which has boosted their empowerment, he said.

The average period to build the house for the poor has come down to nearly 100 days from 300 days earlier, he said.

It is his government’s priority to boost rural economy and empower farmers, he said.

“India is changing rapidly. People’s self-confidence, trust in the government and the resolve to build a new India are visible all-around,” he said.

Citing welfare schemes for transgenders, who were part of the interaction, he said his government was the first to show concern about their difficulties and gave priority to making their lives easier. In 2019, it enacted a law protecting their rights.

Highlighting the steps taken to empower self-help groups, he said collateral-free loans ceiling was increased to Rs 20 lakh from Rs 10 lakh, resulting in 10 crore new women getting associated with them.

They have received over Rs 8 lakh crore assistance for opening new businesses, he said.

Speaking about the government’s efforts to modernise the rural economy and empowering farmers, he listed the steps to strengthen the small farmers, including the presence of over 8,000 farmers producer organisations and 50 crore vaccinations for foot and mouth disease resulting in 50 percent increase in the milk production.

Launched on November 15, the ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra’ was started to attain saturation coverage of flagship government schemes and ensure their benefits reach all targeted beneficiaries in a time-bound manner.

With the Lok Sabha polls expected in April-May, the programme is likely to boost the ruling BJP’s outreach to the poor and tens of millions of beneficiaries of numerous welfare schemes.