RAIPUR: The Central government has withdrawn its allocation for Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-gramin with immediate effect stating that repeated persuasion for expediting the progress of scheme, Chhattisgarh didn’t show satisfactory results on various parameters.
A letter issued by Ministry of rural development to government of Chhattisgarh, stated, “Chhattisgarh has not expedited the progress of satisfactory results in respect of various parameters: registrations of new houses, sanctioning of new houses to PMAY-G beneficiaries, completion of previous allocated houses etc. All this besides release of long pending state’s share under PMAY till date.”
The letter dated November 17, stated that all the factors coupled together have resulted in poor performance of state under the scheme and that the state has failed to utilize the targeted allocations.
“Hence, the target of 7,81,999 houses in rural areas allocated to the state for financial year 2021-22 was withdrawn with immediate effect. The state would also not be allowed to seek targets from the Awas,” the letter reads.
An officer in Chhattisgarh said that the state would soon write to the Ministry citing the reason for non-payment of its share due to pandemic and that the decision should be revoked. He said that the state shares ratio of 60:10 towards PMAY-G.
A Congress spokesperson Dhananjay Singh Thakur said that it was a step-motherly behaviour by the Modi government towards Congress-ruled state of Chhattisgarh and they are being partial with the state by withdrawing Central schemes.
Thakur said that in order to allocate funds from PMAY, they have made it mandatory to register with RERA but the same rule is not being applied in the BJP-ruled states and funds are being sanctioned.
“Centre is yet to pay Rs 1500 crore as second instalment for its 1100 projects. Doesn’t this mean that the Centre is not committed to its execution of work? In the past three years, Centre has withdrawn or deducted in many Central schemes including drinking water programme, national urban livelihood mission, rashtriya madhyamikshiksha abhiyan etc. Centre owes more than Rs 13000 crore to the state under several schemes,” Thakur said.
