During the Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha, DMK’s P. Wilson stated that the Union government owed ₹20,287 crore under 38 heads to the government of Tamil Nadu. Out of this, the GST compensation alone amounted to nearly ₹10,000 crore.
“When you took away the power of the States to collect indirect taxes by legislating GST Act, it was on the promise that the States shares would be promptly paid. It was on this premise that the States’ consent was obtained. By delaying payment, you are committing breach of trust and violating your undertaking made on the floor of Parliament,” he said.
In the Amrut 2.0 scheme, the allocation of funds to the State was not adequate for this financial year when compared to the States of the ruling party, he observed.
‘Schemes will be hit’
If funds were not released soon, important schemes and welfare measures such as the MGNREGA, NRDWP, grants for local bodies, scholarships for SC/ST, smart cities programme, elementary and secondary education, midday meal and so on, would come to a standstill, he noted.
“The State of Tamil Nadu and its people have been ignored . The Union government has to look in to this issue immediately and release the funds so as to ensure that there is smooth functioning, implementation and running of the schemes and achieve the respective objects,” he added.
