Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman blasted the Mamata Banerjee government for the economic downturn in Bengal and de-industrialisation of the state.

Speaking at an event organised by a BJP leaning NGO in Calcutta in the run-up to the general elections, the FM rattled out a few chosen economic indicators to buttress her arguments.

Sitharaman pointed out that Bengal ranked 23rd among Indian states and Union Territories in terms of per capita growth in 2021-22, adding that between 2011-12 and 2019-20, Bengal’s per capita income grew 4.2 per cent compared with the national average of 5.2 per cent.

However, Bengal’s growth stood at 5.5 per cent between 1993-94 and 1999-2000, ahead of India’s growth of 4.6 per cent, the FM claimed. The per capita income growth started trailing the national average from 2001 onwards when the Left Front was the ruling party in the state.

Sitharaman blamed the present government for the economic mismanagement of state finance. “In 2010, Bengal accounted for 6.7 per cent of capital formation in India. Now, it’s only 2.9 per cent. The state has taken no steps to reverse the downward trend,” she claimed.

The FM noted a large portion of Bengal’s revenue goes towards servicing debt and pensions, leaving it no fiscal room to implement any scheme.

Committed expenditure from 2017-18 to 2021-22, which includes interest, payments, pensions and administrative expenses, accounts for almost 35 per cent of the total revenue expenditure of Bengal.

“Policy flip-flops have created an environment in which industry thinks that the state is hostile and nothing much can be done,” she argued.

Recalling that Bengal once accounted for 24 per cent of industrial production at the time of independence, she said the share has fallen to 3.5 per cent.

Sitharaman highlighted the recent corruption cases that rocked Bengal in the recent past. “The nexus of corruption and syndicated crime is taking a toll on the financial health of the state. The only one parameter where Bengal stands out is tolabaazi,” she said.

Central schemes

Claiming that the Mamata Banerjee government is denying the public of Bengal access to centrally sponsored schemes, she said that 2.5 million fake job cards were generated under the MNREGA scheme in Bengal, leading the central government to withhold the funds.

“We have identified nearly 25 lakh fake job cards and so we have withheld the money. This money is taxpayers’ money and we cannot throw it away. Think of this state government. Instead of recovering the money, they are now again paying from the treasury. The taxpayers are twice cheated,” Sitharaman said.

Reacting to the FM’s comments, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said: “The finance minister is speaking like a BJP cadre. Bengal came out first in 100 days of work and now she is speaking about fake job cards. Let the central team go to the states that have fake job cards. The Centre is taking Rs 4,64,000 crore from the state but is not paying our due Rs 1,50,000 crore.”

“BJP has lost in the election and so they are indulging in vindictive politics,” he added.