Himachal CM mourns sad demise of former PM Atal Behari Vajpayee

Dharamshala, August 16, 2018: Chief Minister Shri Jai Ram Thakur has mourned the sad demise of former Prime Minister of India Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who breathed his last at the AIIMS, New Delhi today. He was 93. In his condolence message, Chief Minister said that Shri Vajpayee was a statesman and a visionary leader, whose demise is a great loss to the nation. He said that Shri Vajpayee always considered Himachal Pradesh as his second home and has a house at Prini in Kullu district. He said that the people of the State would always miss the benevolence and special attachment of Shri Vajpayee ji with the State and its people as his demise was a personal loss to the State of Himachal Pradesh. Chief Minister said that the idea to construct Rohtang tunnel connecting landlocked hinterland Lahaul valley with rest of the world was conceived in 1998 by Shri Vajpayee and the project was announced by him on June 3, 2000. He said that this project was nearing completion and would be the biggest gift of Shri Vajpayee to the State. He said that it was National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government led by Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee that Himachal Pradesh got special package for industrial development in 2003. He said that this resulted in industrial investment of thousands of crores of Rupees and employment opportunities to lakhs of youth of the State. Jai Ram Thakur said one of the largest educational programs in the world, 'Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan' was launched during his Prime Ministership. The program was a product of strong will power of this statesman, he added. Chief Minister said that it was during the tenure of Shri Vajpayee that the Golden Quadrilateral, the lifeline of trade in India came into being. In addition, 'Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojna' (PMGSY) aimed at linking the 5 lakh villages of India to cities by all weather roads, which in particular proved a boon to the hilly states like Himachal Pradesh, he added.