*Claim: Women have to walk 5 km in Purulia to fetch drinking water*
Fact: State’s largest drinking water project, to benefit 15 lakh people in 9 blocks, coming up at a cost of about Rs 1,200 crore; Purulia Municipality increased daily water supply from 45 to 85 lakh litres; 7 more reiverbed tube-wells set up in Teledi and Shimulia; 16 taps set up in Baghmundi block; 2 drinking water projects set up in Raghunathpur and Hura.
*Claim: People are still living in darkness.*
Fact: Through implementation of Sabar Ghare Alo Scheme, 100% rural electrification has been achieved.
*Claim: There are no jobs. People are unemployed*
Fact: In the last seven years, with more than 90 lakh jobs created, the unemployment rate has dropped by almost 40%.
In Purulia district:
About 30,000 self-help groups set up under Anandadhara scheme.
About 8,000 ventures approved, for which a total grant of about Rs 54 crore given under Swami Vivekananda Swanirbhar Karmasuchi Prakalpa.
More than 33,000 youths in the Jangalmahal region enrolled in the Employment Bank got employment in police forces.
26 Karmatirthas built to increase employment of local people.
Through Gatidhara Scheme, about 220 youths managed to buy vehicles for commercial use.
*Claim: Bengal contributed 25% to the country’s GDP in the past, the share has fallen to 4%.*
Fact: The current Government inherited the State’s economy in bad shape, with low GDP and high debt. However, in the last seven years, Bengal’s economy has been soaring.
In the past 7 years, the GSDP has increased by over 2 times, growing by 11.46% (2017-18). A rate greater than the overall growth rate of India. Moreover, the state's tax collection has grown by over 2 times.
*Claim: When Trinamool came to power, the state’s debt burden was Rs 2 lakh crore and now it is Rs 3.5 lakh crore*
Fact: The present State Government has repaid over Rs 2.14 lakh crore to the Centre. 70% of the borrowings has been spent on servicing the existing debt. Bengal’s Debt-GSDP ratio was over 50% previously, but has now come down to around 33%.
*Claim: No new bank credits*
Fact: Rs. 24,272 crore average bank credit flow per year to MSME sector between 2011-18
Since 2012-13, SHGs in the State could access more than Rs. 16,000 crore bank credit, out of which 8,000 crore was accessed in 2017-18 only. In that year, more than 4 lakh 40 thousand SHGs were credit linked.
*Claim: No new industry has been set up in Bengal*
Fact: The rate of industrial production in Bengal has increased by 250 per cent over the last seven years.
Bengal presently occupies the top position in creating a conducive environment for business. Load shedding and bandhs are now history. Mandays lost due to strike is zero now.
*Claim: Narendra Modi has announced a new health insurance scheme but Bengal refuses to be a part of it.*
Fact: Bengal Government is already running a successful health insurance scheme ‘Swasthya Sathi’. The scheme has enrolled 50 lakh people so far. So far, 96,088 patients have availed of this cashless healthcare benefit scheme from the network of about 850 hospitals and nursing homes in the state.
The total estimate approved by the Finance Department for the group insurance scheme is Rs 1,363.72 crore.
*Claim: TMC was part of UPA 2 and Bengal received Rs 1.32 lakh crore from the 13th Finance Commission. Under Modi, Rs 3.6 lakh crore was given to Bengal by the 14th Finance Commission.*
Fact: Although the devolution to States had been increased in 14th Finance Commission, the Centrally sponsored schemes, grants and loans have been cut by Rs 1.34 lakh crore. In the General Budget 2015-16, 8 Schemes have been delinked from support of the Centre and 24 Schemes had changed sharing pattern, with higher share of States.
And in case of the 15th Finance Commission, the ToR proposes to use 2011 census data instead of the current 1971 census to decide revenue devolution. This will disadvantage states like Bengal which have controlled their populations better than northern states.
*Claim: Cattle smuggling and Bangladeshi infiltration have increased under TMC rule*
Fact: The BSF, which mans the borders, comes under the purview of the Union Home Ministry. If indeed cattle smuggling and infiltration is taking place, why has the BSF not taken any corrective measures?
Saroop Chattopadhyay.
