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Amid reports of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the floods-battered Kedarnath shrine, money politics has started in Uttarakhand.
In a series of letters to the Prime Minister and other union ministers over the past one week, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat has sought liberal funding from the centre which includes an additional package of Rs 4000 crore for reconstruction and rehabilitation works in the wake of the last year's devastation caused by the flash floods.
In addition to Rs 4000 crore, Rawat also sought Rs 2000 crore as green bonus to the hill state for preserving the environment of the hill state.
Rawat has also demanded expansion of rail networks in the hill state with an approximate central funding of more than Rs 10,000 crore. In his letter to Union Railways Minister Sadananda Gowda, Rawat had demanded the early implementation of the Rs 5000 crore Rishikesh-Karanprayagy project and Rs 4000 crore Bageshwar-Tanakpur projects in the hilly areas. In the latest missive to the Prime Minister, Rawat said Uttarakhand will need an additional package of Rs 4000 crore.
"An additional funding of Rs 4000 be sanctioned to the state for the prompt rehabilitation and reconstruction works and also for reviving the state's economy," Rawat said in his letter to the Prime Minister.
Significantly, the government has come under fire from the opposition for the slow pace of reconstruction and rehabilitation works despite getting a whopping package of nearly Rs 7500 crore from the previous UPA government. A vast network of roads and bridges has to be built and over 200 villages need to be rehabilitated to put life back on track, Rawat told the Prime Minister.
Rawat also said the restoration work was going on and the government would need funds to revive the battered economy and create new infrastructure for the tourism sector.
