Reported By: Neethu Reghukumar
Last Updated: November 15, 2023, 22:29 IST
Thiruvananthapuram [Trivandrum], India
Kerala Local Self Government Minister M B Rajesh said that the state had made their stand clear that this is not charity by any government, whether it is state or Centre. (Photo: X)
Rajesh said that the Government of India has given assistance to just 1,12,000 beneficiaries under two schemes– PMAY Gramin and PMAY Urban
Kerala Local Self Government Minister M B Rajesh hit out at Minister of State V Muraleedharan over the issue of the state’s financial situation and blamed the Government of India, saying it is solely responsible.
“The issue is political and Muraleedharan as a state BJP leader is engineering this crisis in Delhi,” he said.
The minister added that as a union minister, he should come out with figures for the assistance to the state government over Life Mission.
“He should Act on behalf of the people of Kerala. Instead, he is acting against the people of Kerala,” he said.
“The Life Mission is a state government project to provide homes for people. So far for the project Rs 13,736 crores was spent. The Centre has given only Rs 2024.65 crore that that means 85.27% of what is spent for the life mission is by the state government and the local self-bodies, the Centre gives only 14.73 per cent. But the Centre wants their branding, PMAY logo in each of the house where their money was spent,” the minister said.
Rajesh said that the Government of India has given assistance to just 1,12,000 beneficiaries under two schemes– PMAY Gramin and PMAY Urban.
“This assistance is a meagre amount. Under PMAY Gramin, 29,000 beneficiaries have received Rs 72,000. And Under PMAY Urban, 1.5 lakh has been given to 79,,000 beneficiaries. At the same time, Kerala gives 4 lakh to more than 3.5 lakh beneficiaries,” he said.
Rajesh said that the state had made their stand clear that this is not charity by any government, whether it is state or Centre. “This is the right of each beneficiary. We are not doing any branding despite the fact that we are giving the major share. But with giving this paltry amount, the union government is saying that the branding should be done and if that is not done the next instalment will not be given,” the minister said.
Rajesh added that Kerala has recorded the highest revenue growth in the current financial year. He also said that according to the RBI report, Kerala is one of the top three states in reducing revenue expenditure according to the report by Reserve Bank of India
