4 cr Bengal residents denied benefits of 80 central schemes by TMC govt: Union minister

Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Monday claimed that over four crore residents of West Bengal have been denied the benefits of 80 central government welfare schemes by the Mamata Banerjee administration.

Participating in a door-to-door outreach campaign in Panihati assembly constituency in the northern outskirts of the city, Shekhawat said that the West Bengal government has so far deprived 76 lakh farmers of the state of Rs 4,200 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme.

"The Mamata Banerjee government has denied the people of the state the benefits of 80 welfare schemes of the Modi government aimed at helping the poor, Dalits, tribals and people from the marginalised sections," the BJP leader said during an interaction with locals at Panihati.

Maintaining that corruption and anarchy are prevalent in the Trinamool Congress-ruled state, Shekhawat said that the BJP will put an end to the menace after emerging victorious in the assembly elections due in April-May next year.

He said that Banerjee, who herself holds the health portfolio in the state, is denying the people the benefits of the Centre's Ayushman Bharat healthcare scheme.