The budget session of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly got off to a stormy start on Tuesday with Opposition legislators indulging in sloganeering and throwing paper missiles during the address of Governor Ram Naik to the joint session of both the houses of the State Legislature.

Barely had the Governor began his address when the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party legislators, basking in the backdrop of the recent pre-poll alliance between the two parties, started raising slogans in the well of the House.

They held placards and also aimed paper missiles at the Governor. Some of the slogans went as ‘gatbandhan se ghabraye rahe; CBI, ED ko agay layi hai (afraid of the alliance it (read BJP) has brought the ED and CBI to the forefront), `Bhajpa sarkar mast hai, qanoon vyavastha past hai’ (the BJP government is unconcerned about the law and order situation), and ‘Nirdoshon ka farzi encounter band karo’ (stop killing innocents in fake encounters).

In the jostling which took place, SP MLA Subhash Pasi became unconscious. He was immediately rushed to the hospital.

In his one hour address, the Governor touched upon a host of topics including the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. He said Uttar Pradesh occupied a key place in the country’s politics and that the voters in UP had touched the 14.40 crore mark. He urged all voters to exercise their right to vote and called upon all political parties and those associated with the election process to ensure peaceful polls.

The Governor said the objective of the government was to establish the rule of law by creating a crime-free and fear-free atmosphere. The law and order had considerably improved and the common man was free from fear. As many as 7626 culprits were arrested in 3285 police action cases against hardened criminals.

The Governor spoke about the ongoing Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj, the biggest congregation of humanity in the world. He said for the first time in the last 450 years the devotees were getting an opportunity to pay obeisance at the Akshaya Vat and the Saraswati Koop.

He said a new city had come up at the Mela area wherein 250 km long roads and 22 pontoon bridges had been constructed. By changing the name of Allahabad to Prayagraj and of Faizabad to Ayodhya, the government had restored the cultural names of the city, the Governor said.

The 15^th Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas held in Varanasi from January 21 to 23 was a successful effort by the government to connect the diaspora with the development in the state.

The Governor said the February 2018 investors’ summit proved very fruitful as investment MOUs worth Rs 4.68 lakh crore were signed. In July of the same year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of 81 projects involving an investment of Rs 61,000 crore. The Governor said that in order to give a fillip to industrial development, the 341 km long Purvanchal Expressway was under construction from the state’s own financial resources.

A 296 km long Bundelkhand Expressway will also be constructed. The Uttar Pradesh cabinet in principle has taken a decision to get a Ganga Expressway constructed to link the western with the eastern part of the state, he added.

Following the ideal of `Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah, Sarve Santu Niramayah` (may all become happy, may all be healthy) the government has constantly worked towards providing better health services to the people of the state. He said the `Dastak’ campaign launched in three phases has yielded positive impact in controlling brain fever and other communicative diseases. The government was in the process of setting up eight new medical colleges in Deoria, Siddhartnagar, Ghazipur, Mirzapur, Pratapgarh, Fatehpur, Hardoi and the Etah districts.

Naik said the Uttar Pradesh government is determined to effect improvement in electricity sector. “During the period of last 22 months , 94 lakh electricity connections , the highest and a record in itself, have been given so far in the state”, the Governor added.