Union govt owes Bengal Rs 1,163 cr for irrigation projects
The Modi government has not yet paid its share of Rs 1,163 crore for various irrigation projects in Bengal. The financial approval for the Ghatal Master Plan is still awaiting approval.
The Union government owes the Bengal government as much as Rs 1,163 crore for various irrigation projects, including the reconstruction of the embankments destroyed by Cyclone Aila in the Sundarbans, Keleghai-Kapaleswari-Baghai project and Kandi Master Plan. Financial approval for the Ghatal Master Plan has still not been given.
These were revealed by the state irrigation minister Soumen Mahapatra in the assembly on Tuesday, November 16 while replying to questions.
“The state’s effort of giving relief to people from floods every year by improving the irrigation infrastructure is getting hampered by the Centre’s lackadaisical attitude,” he said.
The Union government has provided only Rs 662.08 crore of the total project cost of Rs 1,339.50 crore to reconstruct the embankments damaged by Cyclone Aila in the Sundarbans. The state has spent Rs 336.33 crore on the same.
Initially, the Centre’s share was to be 75 per cent, which it brought down unilaterally to 50 per cent during the financial year 2015-16. Even that has not been fully paid.
For the Keleghai-Kapaleswari-Baghai project, of the total project cost of Rs 325.20 crore, only Rs 166.58 crore has been cleared. The Bengal government has been forced to spend Rs 225.81 crore so that people are not affected.
The story of neglect continues for the Kandi master Plan. Only Rs 81.90 crore out of Rs 408.94 crore has been cleared by the Union government. The state’s expenditure, so far, has been Rs 234.01 crore, Mahapatra said.
The minister said that financial approval has not been given for taking up the work of the Ghatal Master Plan, a major flood control project in south Bengal, which will benefit 657 square km. The project cost of the first phase is Rs 1214.92 crore, which was approved by the relevant Union ministry in 2015.
Initially, the work was to take place in the 75:25 ratio, with 75 per cent to be paid by the Centre. Later, the Centre proposed a 50:50 ratio. This was changed to 60:40 after a delegation from the state went to meet the Union Jal Shakti Minister.
However, no money has yet been paid. Rather, the Bengal government has already spent Rs 339, which is about 70 per cent of its share, so that at least some help gets to the people as lakhs get affected by floods every year.
