Raipur, Apr 15 (PTI) People in Chhattisgarh can now avail services like cash transactions, and obtain birth and death certificates in their village panchayats, instead of travelling elsewhere, at a new facility centre to be launched soon by the state government.

The Chhattisgarh government will start ‘Atal Panchayat Digital Suvidha Kendra’ in 1,460 village panchayats of the state from April 24 on National Panchayati Raj Day under which cash payment, digital services and other facilities will be provided, a public relations department official said on Tuesday.

On Monday, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between service providers of the Common Service Centres and sarpanchs (village heads) in the presence of Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai for establishing the facilities in 10 village panchayats of each development block in the state, he said.

At these facilities, villagers will be able to easily withdraw money from their accounts, deposit money in their own and other’s account, pay electricity, water bills and also get money under their pension and insurance facilities, the official said.

The people will not have to go to the development block or district headquarters for small works. They will be able to avail many facilities in the village itself, he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised the people of Chhattisgarh to start the facility of cash payment in gram panchayats, CM said said, adding that with this initiative, his government will fulfil another promise under Modi’s guarantee (poll promise).

“We have fulfilled most of the promises under Modi’s guarantee in just 16 months, including paddy procurement for farmers at Rs 3,100 per quintal, payment of pending paddy bonus for two years, Mahtari Vandan Yojana (financial assistance scheme) for women, Ramlala Darshan Yojna for the elderly people and annual assistance of Rs 10,000 to 5.62 lakh landless agricultural laborers,” he said.

At these digital facility centres in village panchayats, farmers will be able to get payment for the sale of paddy, and benefits under the Mahtari Vandan Yojana, pension and other schemes, and will also be able to avail other services including issuance of birth and death certificates, Sai added. PTI TKP GK