Siddaramaiah slams Centre for pushing Karnataka to bankruptcy

BENGALURU: Opposition leader in the Karnataka assembly Siddaramaiah slammed the Central government of pushing Karnataka into bankruptcy when the state is already facing fund crunch. “The Centre is bankrupt, and by cutting into funds that the state actually deserves, it is also pushing Karnataka towards bankruptcy,” he told reporters in Hubballi on Thursday.

This week, the Central government approved second installment of Rs 699 crore for the flood relief work. With it, the total compensation amount for the state so far is Rs 1,869 crore, which both Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and former CM Siddaramaiah have said is inadequate. The Central government approved the second installment only after the Chief Minister made a public appeal before Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking more funds for flood relief work in a farmers’ rally in Tumakuru last week.

Siddaramaiah said that the amount sanctioned to the state was too less compared to the actual loss of Rs 36,000 crore. “We have not got the compensation for drought yet. The dues from Centre for MGNREGA, delay in GST compensation, drinking water schemes, are affecting the state’s exchequer. I have gathered that the Central government is likely to cut in tax devolution of about Rs 5,000 crore. It will impact the state severely,” he said.

The former CM said that he will wait for another six months to see if the BJP regime in the state is going to fix the problem. "Else, we will hit the street,” he said.