BENGALURU: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday told the Legislative Council that the government’s finances have not been impacted due to Rs 51,034 crore spent on its guarantee schemes. The CM was responding to DS Arun’s allegations that Guarantee Schemes are draining resources. Siddaramaiah stated that, so far, Rs 1,31,000 crore have been spent on the five schemes.
The CM said that an increase in the rate of bus fares, milk, and others was to fund welfare schemes, and the increase is less compared to other states. Despite guarantee schemes, the fund allocation for the social welfare department was Rs 16,954 crore, and Rs 65,000 crore is allocated for the education sector.
The CM said the BJP condemned the guarantee schemes but copied and implemented them in Maharashtra. “They announced Rs 1,500 under the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin scheme worth Rs 36,000 crore to women heads, similar to our Gruha Lakhmi scheme,” he said. The CM stated that in the next financial year, Rs 51,286 crore will be spent on Guarantee Schemes. He also said that the government would fill nearly 50,000 vacancies.
BJP’s Bharathi Shetty said she was initially very supportive of the schemes but later felt that the government is taxing more by increasing rates on milk and other services to sustain these schemes.