Former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday challenged the government to withdraw below poverty line (BPL) cards if more than five crore people of the State entered “middle class status” because of implementation of five guarantees - Shakti, Anna Bhagya, Griha Jyoti, Griha Lakshmi and Yuvanidhi - by the State government.
Intervening during Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s reply on the motion of thanks to the Governor’s address to the joint session of the State legislature, Mr. Bommai accused the government of “telling lies” to the people through the Governor’s address, where it was stated that more than five crore people were coming out of the poverty line and rising to the middle class status owing to guarantees schemes.
Mr. Bommai said incentive of ₹5 per litre of milk amounting to ₹757 crore to 8.65 lakh milk producers had not been transferred. The incentive has not been paid for six months, he added.
The government has claimed that it had fulfilled 97% of announcements made in the last year’s Budget. Mr. Bommai said only notifications have been issued and works have not yet started. The government said that ₹3,000 crore had been earmarked for the Kalyana Karnataka Development Board and action plan had been approved for 5,468 works. But only a few works were completed till last year. The incumbent government had claimed the achievements of the previous BJP government as its achievements, the former Chief Minister alleged.
On the Centre’s delay in the release of ₹5,300 crore for the Upper Bhadra Project, Mr. Bommai said the State government has not submitted a proposal as per procedure to avail funding under the Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the Centre would release funds if the latter followed the procedure, Mr. Bommai said.
