BHUBANESWAR: Stepping up attack on the ruling BJD, Union Minister of State for Rural Development Ram Kripal Yadav on Thursday charged Odisha Government for misutilising Central assistance provided under different flagship programmes.
Yadav, who was on a day’s visit to the State for the foundation stone laying programme for city gas distribution (CGD) at Behampur in Ganjam district, accused Odisha Government of creating hurdles in implementation of Central schemes.
“Large-scale irregularities have been reported in implementation of schemes of Rural Development Ministry, be it Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) or Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) or social welfare programmes for the poor,” he said.
The Centre has been providing enough financial assistance to Odisha Government for development in rural areas. But sadly, there is no proper utilisation of the funds in implementation of the developmental programmes as bureaucrats and ruling party leaders misappropriate a major chunk of the assistance, Yadav told mediapersons on his arrival in the City.
“As I have told earlier, the practice of collecting percentage as commission (PC) is rampant at all level of administration,” he said adding, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik though aware of the irregularities is keeping silent.
In his last visit to Odisha, the Union Minister had alleged that ruling party leaders and bureaucrats are claiming 20-25 per cent of the financial allocations from contractors in implementation of PMGSY projects. Besides, beneficiaries of rural housing are also being asked to pay `10,000 for each house under PMAY.
On the other hand, dismissing Yadav’s allegations, BJD spokesperson Pratap Keshari Deb said there is not a grain of truth in the Union Minister’s assertion. Describing his comments as a malicious attempt to defame BJD, Deb wondered how the Centre has been awarding the State Government for its performance in different sectors. The Centre has given 28 awards to the State Government for its excellent performance in implementation of Central schemes.
Deb reminded Yadav that his Ministry has rewarded Odisha for creating record in rural road construction under PMGSY and highest number of houses under PMAY. The Union Minister should verify records to know the BJD Government’s performance, he added.