Kolkata, February 11 Union Minister Bhupender Yadav criticised the TMC government in West Bengal on Wednesday over alleged poor governance and corruption, and termed its vote-on-account, recently presented in the assembly, as a "farewell document".
He also accused the TMC regime of irregularities in the MGNREGA scheme, non-submission of utilization certificates for funds allocated to the PM Awas Yojana, and corruption in the PM Poshan Yojana.
Addressing a press conference at a hotel in Salt Lake, in the presence of the Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, Yadav alleged that centrally mandated Disha meetings were not held and that schemes such as PM-Kisan were not fully implemented in the state.
The objective of Disha is to ensure improved coordination among elected representatives and government officials for the efficient, inclusive, and time-bound development of districts.
Referring to allocations in the vote-on-account tabled in the state assembly last week, Yadav claimed that funds for science education were low, while Rs 5,713.61 crore had been allocated to madrasas.
The minister also alleged that north Bengal, with a population of around three crore, had received only Rs 910 crore.
"The state is operating with low capital expenditure, continuously borrowing without increasing its income. This is not just the TMC's last budget, but its farewell document," he claimed.
Despite West Bengal's strong potential in textiles and industries, the state government has "failed" to present a clear development roadmap, he said.
Yadav said the Rural Development Ministry alone has allocated Rs 1.10 lakh crore to West Bengal, but the state government "failed to properly implement central schemes".
The minister asserted that the recently tabled Union Budget charts a roadmap for inclusive growth.
He said India's GDP has risen to around USD 4.18 - 4.19 trillion, surpassing Japan, and the country is moving steadily towards the goal of becoming a developed nation by 2047.
"A welfare state must focus on boosting investment, generating employment, and ensuring prosperity for every section of society. Keeping this in mind, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has presented the Budget," the minister said.
He said investments in roads, airports, ports, freight corridors, and the integration of tier-2 and tier-3 cities would modernise infrastructure and reduce logistics costs.
The proposed Surat–Dankuni Freight Corridor and the Siliguri–Varanasi rail corridor, along with developments in Durgapur, would improve connectivity and reduce transportation costs by up to 30 per cent, he added.
Highlighting support for small businesses, Yadav said a Rs 10,000 crore SME Growth Fund has been proposed.
He alleged that 6,800 listed companies have shut down in West Bengal during Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's tenure and claimed that the MSME sector in the state has suffered.
Yadav said special emphasis has been laid on the jute sector by the Centre, noting that 80 per cent of India's jute is produced in West Bengal, and the industry directly employs 2.5 lakh people.
Technological upgradation in jute has been prioritised in the central budget, he added.
The minister said the budget focused on textiles, entrepreneurship, and skill development, and announced that girls' hostels would be set up in every district to support women migrating to cities for education and work.
He claimed that over the past decade, the BJP government has created two crore "Lakhpati Didis" across the country.