Mamata accuses Centre of "double standards" in flood relief

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today accused the Centre of applying double standards in dealing with flood relief demands of states.
While the Centre sat for eight months over West Bengal government's demand for funds for post-flood reconstruction work, though a high-level team from Delhi had visited the state, Tamil Nadu's similar demand was met within seven days, she regretted.
Addressing a meeting here in Hooghly district, Mamata said, "Is it that Tamil Nadu is more friendly, and West Bengal is not?", asking the Central government to "work in the interest of people leaving aside politics."
She, however, took pride in the fact that despite the "step-motherly attitude and non-cooperation of the Centre", the government had been carrying out all development programmes in the interest of people.

Without taking Prime Minister Narendra Modi's name, she criticised the imposition of 'cess' for implementing "Swachh Bharat" project.
Saying that the Narandra Modi government was acting like Muhammad bin Tughluq, Mamata criticised the termination or drastic reduction of Central funds for several social sector projects like mid-day meal, ICDS, police modernisation, Sarba Siksha Abhijan and Jangalmahal development programmes, among others.

"If I don't get funds, how will I carry on with various development projects taken in hand?" the chief minister wanted to know and urged the Centre to immediately resume fund allocation.
She also voiced her long-standing demand for the Centre's sharing of the huge debt burden left by the erstwhile Left Front government.

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During her visit, Banerjee flagged off the "Sabuj Sathi" scheme in Hooghly district and either inaugurated or laid the foundation stone for a cluster of projects including the renovated and modernised fifth unit of Bandel Thermal Power Plant.
The chief minister claimed that the state had become self-reliant in the power availability. "We are setting up a power bank and within one year it would supply surplus power to other states."
"The erstwhile Left Front government did not think about the farmers, but we have set up 176 Kishan Mandis (market for farmers) in the state," she said.

In the health sector too, Banerjee claimed, a lot of improvement had taken place because of special initiatives taken by her government.
She said that the government had already made treatment in government hospitals free and assured that treatment of cancer patients would also be made free in the government hospitals.