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On VIP constituencies getting uninterrupted power supply, Yogi said, "Did the other 71 districts not vote? This is making mockery of democracy. If you want a facility you will have to cooperate. Villages showing no line losses will get 24 hour power by 2018."

Yogi said that UP's 59,000 gram panchayats will be made open defecation-free (ODF) by October 2018. The chief minister also set a December 31, 2017 target for ending open defecation in 30 districts of UP.

Yogi also pushed for smart villages on the lines of smart cities. Pushing for panchayats to encourage cashless transactions, the CM said every nyay panchayat in the state should set up two Chandrashekhar Azad Rural Development Secretariats from where to discharge all panchayat related work from.

Yogi also unveiled the print and app-based versions of Gramodaya Sankalp, a panchayati raj quarterly magazine which will keep people up to date on the Government of India's decisions related to strengthening panchayats in the country.

"The Prime Minister said when we talk about smart cities we should also talk about smart villages. All 59,000 gram panchayats will be connected with the ongoing process of modernisation and made smart," he said.