Bengal's DA crisis: Mamata Banerjee blames Centre for 'freezing' central funds

Kolkata, May 20 (IANS) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Tuesday, indirectly blamed the Union government for the forthcoming and imminent pressure on the state exchequer following a Supreme Court order last week directing the state government to immediately pay 25 per cent of the dearness allowance (DA) dues to the state government.

Addressing a public programme at Jalpaiguri in North Bengal, Banerjee claimed that as the Union government had frozen payments under various centrally-sponsored schemes to the state government, the latter had to continue those projects with its own money, as a result of which there was constant pressure on the state exchequer.

“Payment of Rs 1.75 lakh crore is still pending from the Union government. We are running at least four centrally-sponsored projects from funds from the state exchequer. I am not a magician that money will rain from the skies as it happens in fiction movies. There needs to be a constant flow of cash. So, I am requesting everybody to understand the situation. Do not malign the state government and the state just to criticise me,” the Chief Minister said.

Though she did not refer to the pending dearness allowance dues, her clear indication is the state government that has been fighting a long battle, both on the streets as well as in the courtrooms, to get their legitimate rights on dearness alliance payments at par with their counterparts in central government or other state governments.

On Monday, while speaking to media persons on the issue of due DA payments, the Chief Minister said that she would not make any comment, but would act legally in the matter.

Currently, the West Bengal government employees are receiving a dearness allowance at the rate of 18 per cent, as against 55 per cent received by those in the central government or other state governments.

As per initial estimates, the immediate payment of 25 per cent dearness allowance arrears will result in an immediate drain-out of around Rs 12,000 crore or slightly less than that from the state exchequer.

--IANS

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