New Delhi, Sept. 11 (PTI): Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked chief ministers of all states and Union territories to set targets for welfare projects for minorities under a new programme.

The move assumes significance against the backdrop of the Malegaon blasts and the upcoming Assembly polls in several states.

In a letter written yesterday to the chief ministers, Singh asked them to put in place mechanisms for implementation of minority schemes so that they receive “due attention at the highest level”.

Singh said the process would be monitored by a committee of secretaries at the Centre that would submit a report to the Union cabinet.

The government has finalised the new programme as the earlier ones had not reached the intended beneficiaries.

“The importance of maintenance of communal peace and harmony and provision of a fair share in central and state government employment, including the public sector undertakings, to the minorities remains undiluted and these continue to be fundamental constituents of the revised programme,” the Prime Minister said.

Singh recalled that in 1983, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had announced a 15-point programme designed to counter communal disharmony and violence, ensure government jobs for minorities and provide them representation in programmes for economic empowerment.