Cut in MGNREGS funds to Karnataka: Patil urges Centre to relook decision

The state had sent a proposal to the Centre demanding the release of Rs 3,500 cr in 2014-15 to take up works under the MGNREGS

Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj H K Patil today urged Centre to reconsider its decision to cut funds to states under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).

Speaking to reporters in Dharwad, Patil said the state government had sent a proposal to the Centre demanding the release of Rs 3,500 crore for this financial year to take up works under the MGNREGS. However, according to sources, the Centre has decided to sanction Rs 2,100 crore against the state’s demand of Rs 3,500 crore.

This act of the Union government would hamper the development activities proposed to be implemented, he added.

The state government has already urged the Centre not to cut down the funds as MGNREGS was an ambitious project and would brighten the lives of the rural masses in wake of employment generation and also development, he asserted.

Patil said, the matter has been brought to the notice of chief minister Siddaramaiah, and very shortly a delegation led by the CM and himself would meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Cabinet colleagues, he added.

On potable water, Patil stated that scores of villages in the state till date did not have access to potable water. According to a survey report, people living in more than 700 villages get only 15-20 litres each water every day. Now, the state has given emphasis to improving the drinking water supply in rural areas and there was no dearth of funds to address water woes of the people, he said.

Replying to a query on sugarcane price fixation, Patil said the state had fixed Rs 2,650 for a tonne of sugarcane.

Directions have been given to sugar factory owners to abide by the guidelines issued by the government. If the sugar factory owners disobey the order, the government will not refrain from sending their owners to jail, he added.