Mamata blames centre on fund release

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SME Times News Bureau | 05 Dec, 2017
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said the Centre owes the state more than Rs 13,000 crore under various developmental schemes this year while BJP leader and Union Minister Babul Supriyo accused the state of not utilising funds properly.

"By our calculation till November 25, we are supposed to get Rs 13,714 crore from the central government under various developmental schemes even after paying off our yearly debt of Rs 40,000 crore to the centre," Banerjee said after the administrative meeting at the state secretariat Nabanna.

She said the money is to be paid by the Centre under central schemes like NDRF (National Disaster Response Fund), Swachh Bharat Mission, National Urban Livelihood Mission, National Rural Drinking Water Programme, exchange of enclaves and so on.

Refuting the allegations, Supriyo said: "For the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, about 1,393 crore was released for the state in 2016-17 and in the current fiscal, the release was to the tune of Rs 3,208 crore. How many houses were built?"

Alleging that actual beneficiaries were deprived of getting guaranteed job under the MGNREGA in the state, he said about Rs 3,744 crore was released from centre in the 2014-15 fiscal for the scheme and it was increased to Rs around 5,054 crore in the current fiscal for the same.

In terms of Amrut project, Supriyo said the centre was able to release Rs 489.71 crore till date against the state's entitlement of Rs 4,035 crore during 2015-2020 period, because the state was yet to submit the utilisation certificate of the first installment.

Giving an account of the state's expenditure in the current administrative calendar, the chief minister said it has increased the release of planned funds this year and has also decided to spend Rs 12,000 crore separately for infrastructural development in the state.

"In 2016, total planned fund released was Rs 36,730 crore, but this time we have released more than Rs 44,000 crore. So it has been considerably increased. We have also decided to spend Rs 12,000 crore extra for infrastructural development and Rs 900 crore has been already released," she said.

Banerjee said the state would introduce E-Office in all the state run departments from the beginning of next year to bring in more transparency and credibility.

She also claimed that accidental deaths in the state have come down by 13 per cent while the number of road accidents has reduced by 16 per cent after the state government's initiative on road safety.

"Bengal is now the second least road accident prone state after Punjab. But our population is twice of Punjab. So considering the population, it can be said our state is number one in this regard," she added.