Bengal refutes Congress claim on Central aid

KOLKATA: The root cause of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s ire against the Congress has been the party’s lackadaisical attitude in giving the Central aid to the state government. The state which is reeling under Rs 1.92 lakh crore debt burden has been rallying for a bailout package from the time Didi assumed the reins of the state in May last year.

However, as the wait continues and Banerjee grows impatient, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi claimed on Sunday that the Union Government had already disbursed Rs 8,000 crore to the state. A day later, state Finance Minister Amit Mitra strongly refuted his claim stating that not ‘a single paisa’ had been given to the state government yet. “What Abhishek Manu Singhvi has said (that the Centre has given the state Rs 8,000 crore) is completely incorrect. We have not received any package from the Centre. The current government has not received a single paisa. He probably doesn’t know this as he doesn’t follow economics. He is a lawyer,” said Mitra.

The Centre had pledged Rs 21,614 crore as bailout package, including Rs 8,750 crore for development of the backward areas. Mitra has also urged Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to give relief to the state in the upcoming Union Budget in the form of grants to cover the interest and repayment obligations of the state for a period of three years. Singhvi said: “If there is in any sector where the Chief Minister wants to draw attention, the Centre is always ready to discuss it. It is wrong to say that the state is being ignored.”