Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel was warmly welcomed by Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant upon his arrival in Panaji on Monday. Patel is in Goa to participate in the 28th Western Zonal Council Meeting, which focuses on regional cooperation and development among member states.
He said 14,745 rural families in the state had benefited from household biogas plants so far. The initiative has resulted in annual savings of Rs 36.9 crore on fuel expenditure and helped reduce more than 12,800 metric tonnes of carbon emissions every year, according to figures presented at the meeting. The plants also generate around 3.81 crore litres of bio-slurry annually, helping promote organic farming and reduce the use of chemical fertilisers.
Patel said Western Zonal Council has evolved into a result-oriented platform based on cooperation, coordination and dialogue among states. Such meetings provide an opportunity for states to share their strengths, resources, experiences and best practices to achieve common national goals, he said. The meeting, held under the chairmanship of Union home minister Amit Shah , was attended by the chief ministers of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa, besides the administrator of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. As part of the best-practice sharing exercise, Patel presented Gujarat’s achievements under the Centre’s Gobar Dhan scheme.
Gandhinagar: Speaking at the 28th meeting of the Western Zonal Council in Goa on Monday, chief minister Bhupendra Patel said that cooperative federalism is the mantra for the country’s development.