Apparently furious with the Centre for allegedly cutting down funds to the State under various schemes, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who had been attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “trying to bulldoze the State Governments” opened new fronts lambasting the Centre for inundating parts of Bengal by releasing water from its storage dams — that function under the Damodar Valley Corporation — and trying to shift the Tea Board from Kolkata.
“It is a man-made flood,” Banerjee complained when asked to comment on the flooding of large parts of Hooghly, West Midnapore, Bankura, Howrah and Burdwan. “Flood on account of incessant rain is God’s act but when such flood is caused due to release of excessive water from dams it certainly is man-made,” Banerjee said adding the DVC which was controlled by the Centre was releasing water without consulting the State.
Drowning others to save oneself is unacceptable and if this continues then “we will have to think about extending cooperation to the Centre” she said threatening legal action against the Centre. “If the DVC and the Central Water Commission release water without the State’s knowledge then we will take legal against the DVC,” she said.
A previous statement from Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal said water was released under the instruction of the CWC which had representatives of the States in it.
Adding ‘tea’ to ‘water’ Banerjee also claimed that the Centre is also trying to shift the Tea Board from Kolkata to Assam which was currently ruled by the BJP. “We will protest against this if they try to do so,” she said.
On the poor condition of national highways the Chief Minister said the “Centre is failing in all directions” speaking about the “poor condition of the national highways.” If the “Centre cannot maintain the roads then they should give it to us and we will show them how to work.”
The Chief Minister had for the one past week or so been launching fierce attack on the Modi Government calling the Prime Minister a “dictator” who was bulldozing the “State Governments in the name of corporate federalism.”
Banerjee even sent a team of MPs to meet President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday evening with questions as to whether the Centre had the right to post its officials at State treasuries and BDO offices to monitor spending of funds.
Sudip Bandopadhyay the Trinamool MP who led the team said they appraised the President about how the Centre was entering into the domain of the States which was inimical to the country’s federal structure.
He said the Centre is dictating terms on implementation of the schemes of the States particularly by financially arm-twisting the State.
“Earlier the Centre provided full funds to the States for certain schemes but now they are asking us to bear 40 percent. Besides they are taking unilateral decisions on the amount of money to be spent as also the nomenclature of the schemes,” he complained echoing the Chief Minister who had threatened to hit the streets “if the Centre continues to be dictatorial and bulldoze us.”