CHENNAI/NAGAPATTINAM: Another round of war of words erupted between Governor RN Ravi and the state government over his allegation that due to administrative apathy and corruption, the deserving poor villagers of Nagapattinam district are not able to get the benefit of the Prime Minister’s housing scheme.
In a reply to his allegation, Law Minister S Regupathy said the governor was doing all things except his duty.
In his post, Ravi had criticised the memorial of Keezhvenmani massacre. He wrote, “A humongous high-cost concrete structure in Keezhvenmani village as a memorial, to commemorate the massacred 44 poor labourers, in the midst of thatched shacks of the poor all around by a political party that claims to champion the proletariat is not only ironical but a mocking insult to the martyrs and the poor.” (sic). Ravi tagged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and news agencies in his post.
In a press statement, Regupathy said, “The governor is suffering from ‘media mania disease’ and seeking publicity by criticising the state government. Governors of all southern states, including Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan and Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan are engaging in a discreet competition for media attention and acting like state spokespersons of the BJP. If at all Ravi needed any clarification about the scheme, he could have asked the government. Is this right for the governor to criticise the government like an opposition party? I want to know on what basis he is alleging corruption in the PM’s scheme.”
Regupathy accused Ravi of neglecting his duties and undertaking frequent trips to Delhi for personal reasons.
Refuting Ravi’s allegations, Minister for Rural Development I Periyasamy said 127 beneficiaries in the Keezhavenmani panchayat have been authorised to construct houses under PM Awas Yojana.
Among them, the construction of 75 houses has been completed, while work on the remaining 52 houses is in progress. The union government has earmarked a total of 31,051 houses for construction in Nagapattinam district out of which 23,110 have been completed so far.
Comparing fund allocation for housing, he said the union government had allocated `72,000 for a house under this scheme, while the state government contributed `1.68 lakh for a house.
On Sunday, Ravi had met and honoured G Palanivel, survivor of the Keezhvenmani massacre.
It may be noted that there are two memorials in Keezhvenmani. CPM built and opened the smaller memorial in 1970 over Ramaiyan Kudisai (Ramaiya’s hut) where the farm workers and their family members were burnt to death.
The other memorial is built over 3,000 sqm near the first memorial. CPM inaugurated the new memorial on March 9, 2014, in a partially-constructed state. Work is still being carried out to complete it. The CPM kept both memorials locked during the governor’s visit on Sunday.
The party’s Nagapattinam district secretary V Marimuthu told TNIE, “CPM manages both the memorials. The public can access them on the anniversary day. Anyone who intends to visit them on other days should seek our permission.”