THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Union Minister V Muraleedharan has said that the state is wrongly blaming the Centre for the mess created due to the wastefulness and financial mismanagement of the Pinarayi Vijayan government.
Stating that all the state governments know how much revenue deficit grant they are going to get every year in advance, Muraleedharan told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday that the CPM government is deliberately misleading the public with the claim that the Centre has slashed the grant.
He also said that Kerala is one of the states that has received the highest revenue deficit grant in the country. “You cannot remain a fool or pretend to be a fool before the people,” said Muraleedharan on the charges raised by Finance Minister K N Balagopal against the Centre.
He went on to list out the funds given by the Union government and also pointed out that if the money was held back in certain instances, it was either because the state government did not submit the application on time (as in the case of the second tranche of social security pension or Rs 750 crore due to the 7th salary revision) or non-compliance with the Centre’s norms (as in the case of capital assistance to central projects, health grants through local bodies).
He also blamed the state government for diverting or under-utilising the funds provided by the Centre. “The Union government is responsible for the repayment of the borrowing done in the name of ‘off-budget borrowing’. The limit of 3% GSDP has been set because if each state is allowed to borrow as it likes, the financial stability of the country will be compromised,” said Muraleedharan.
“As early as 2017, it was agreed between the Centre and the states that the GST compensation would end on June 30, 2022. Anticipating that, the state government did not take any steps to increase its own tax revenue,” he criticised.