There was another war of words between Delhi and Kolkata with the Centre pulling up the Mamata Banerjee Government for not sending any representative in the launch of centrally sponsored Prime MinisterVishwakarma Scheme.
The Bengal ruling outfit hit back while providing its reason for skipping the PMVS programme even as it accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “trying to venerate his own birthday by the launch of a Government scheme funded out of people’s money.”
The war of words between the two sides started when Union Minister RK Singh slammed the State Government for sending no representative at the launch of the scheme in Kolkata.
“The State Government should have been more proactive regarding the new central scheme which targets the common people … but here I can see that they have sent no representatives, which shows that the State is not fulfilling its duties,” Singh said.
“It is the duty of the State Government to take these schemes to the people … this at a time when the entire scheme is being funded by the Centre … the State will have to spend not a single penny and it is the people of this State that will be benefited by the scheme,” he said.
The Prime Minister on Sunday launched the much touted Rs 13,000 crore PM Viswakarma Scheme for providing collateral-free loans and skills training to 18 categories of traditional artisans and crafts persons.
The Bengal Government was prompt to react with Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya alleging in the name of launching a project the Prime Minister was trying to commemorate his birthday.
“This is nothing but remembering the birthday of the Prime Minister through a scheme funded by public money,” Bhattacharya said adding “the Centre is not giving any personal money to the people … they are giving people’s money realized as taxes back to the people … so where is a big deal in it.”
Bhattacharya is one of the senior ministers in the State in the absence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who was presently touring Spain.
The Bengal minister recalled how the Chief Minister had launched a number of schemes often copied by the Centre and accused the Modi Government for holding back thousands of crores that rightfully belonged to the State.
“The (Central) minister is talking big today but what about the thousands of crores that the Centre has blocked … they are not even giving us permission to demonstrate in Delhi to demand out money … the Centre is not giving several thousand crores towards MNREGA, PM Housing and other schemes and nor they are staging a new drama with this Viswakarma scheme which will be of no use to the people … in Bengal our Chief Minister has opened scores of ITIs and polytechnic colleges,” the Bengal minister said.
TMC MP Shantanu Se too hit back at the Centre saying “the Bengal Government has better schemes than the one’s being brought by the Centre … Our Kanyashri project has a bigger budget than Beti Bachao Beti Padhao … Our Swasthya Saathi project is 100 times better than the Ayushman Bharat … Our Chief Minister has started Laxmir Bhandar scheme which has no parallel in Delhi … so Mamata Banerjee does not have to take any lesson from the BJP Government … it will be better if they release the money they are not releasing in order to make the poor voters who had not voted them in 2021 to suffer and starve.”