Bengaluru, May 15 Karnataka Minister for Home G. Parameshwara on Thursday demanded that the Central government should immediately release Rs 5,500 crore funds for the state.
“If the Central government releases the funds due to Karnataka, it would help the state's development,” he stated.
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Parameshwara said that for the past two years, the state has been requesting the Central government to release the grants it is owed.
“Due to various reasons, the process has been delayed, and at times, the funds have not been released at all. The Chief Minister has held a meeting regarding this and has appealed to the state’s Members of Parliament to put pressure on the Centre to release the funds.”
He added that an immediate release of Rs 5,500 crore from the Centre to the state is necessary, adding that based on the principles governing Centre-State relations, pressure must be applied.
“In the past, we even held a protest in Delhi to urge the Centre. If the grants that are rightfully ours were sanctioned, why would we need to protest? The release of these funds will aid the state’s development. I, too, urge the Centre to release the money,” he said.
On the absence of MPs in the meeting held on Wednesday, he said, “Only they know the reason for their absence. They may have had other responsibilities. Our government and the Chief Minister have given MPs the respect they deserve. There is no doubt about that. But we do not know the exact reason they didn't attend.”
He also announced a large-scale event to be held in Hosapete, Vijayanagar district, on May 20 by the Congress party.
“More than 50,000 people will be given land ownership rights by the Revenue Department. This is a government programme. Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, and Randeep Surjewala will participate in the event,” Parameshwara informed.
Extending birthday wishes to Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, Parameshwara said, “He is the one who introduced the Greater Bengaluru concept. I hope the concept becomes a success. We’ve seen many major cities around the world. We understand how this concept functions. The Greater Bengaluru Authority replaces the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) as the city’s governing body today. If there are any shortcomings, we will fix them. The main goal of Greater Bengaluru is to ease planning and focus more on resolving the city’s issues.”
--IANS
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