JOIN USAAP govt slams Centre for not allocating money for Delhi, Deputy CM Manish Sisodia writes to FM Nirmala Sitharaman
AAP-led Delhi government has accused the Narendra Modi government of "playing politics" for not allocating any assistance from the Rs 17,287 crore it released to different states to "enhance their financial resources" to deal with the challenges in the fight against coronavirus.
The Ministry of Finance on April 3 has released Rs 11,092 crore under State Disaster Response Mitigation Fund to 27 states and Rs 6,195.08 crore on account of revenue deficit grant under the 15th Finance Commission recommendation to 14 states.
In a letter to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said it has been "unfortunate" that they have not been "not given a single rupee" by the Centre, which has come as a "huge shock and a disappointment" to the Delhi government at a time is fighting shoulder to shoulder with the Centre in the fight against the pandemic.
This happened despite an assurance from the Centre that states will be provided relief from the Disaster Fund, Sisodia, also the Delhi Finance Minister, said adding it was "sad" that Delhi, being the national capital of India, has been "forsaken" and its needs "ignored".
"The Centre is not expected to play politics in such a situation, neither in a federal structure nor in these times of a calamity that has arisen before us. Delhi is the national capital of the country, and the Central and the state government are working together in Delhi to contain COVID-19. Not providing any kind of assistance to Delhi just shows that the Central government is playing politics even in the times of a calamity like corona(virus)," he said.
He said the state has been asking the Centre to provide more Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) and testing kits for COVID-19 but it has not been provided despite the state is experiencing a shortage of these critical needs.
Pointing out that Delhi is the third-worst affected region in the country, Sisodia said the Delhi government is providing food to more than 6.5 lakh people twice a day across the state and has the capacity to provide food to around 10 lakh people. It has also initiated a provision of 7.5 kg ration to 71 lakh beneficiaries in Delhi and is launching a scheme to provide ration to non-ration cardholders.
"In such a situation, Delhi being kept out of the ambit of the relief fund is unfair treatment towards the people of Delhi," he said.
Deccan Herald is on WhatsApp Channels| Join now for Breaking News & Editor's Picks