THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It is the same old story, infuriatingly repetitive year after year and Budget after Budget. Kerala continues to be at the receiving end of the Union Government’s callous neglect in the Budget.
Kerala’s list of demands has been completely disregarded. The State’s hopes of securing a special package of Rs 24,000 crore and a special Rs 5000-crore assistance for the Vizhinjam port project have been dashed.
Other demands of the State which do not find a place in the Budget are Rs 2000-crore prop-up for rehabilitation of the landslide survivors in Wayanad, an All India Institute of Medical Sciences(AIIMS) and projects for tackling human-wildlife conflict and emerging climate change-related challenges.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan voiced his disappointment by terming the Budget as deplorable for rejecting the State’s major demands. “The Budget violates the federal principles enshrined in the Constitution by denying the States their rightful dues. While Rs 25 lakh crore has been earmarked for the States, Kerala is set to receive not even Rs 40,000 crore. Kerala is being punished for its progress. Even Kerala’s requests regarding borrowing limits have been rejected. The Union Budget has become a political document that disregards Kerala’s expectations. This is extremely disappointing and unfortunate,” he said.
Finance Minister K N Balagopal described it as extremely disappointing for Kerala. In a strongly-worded statement, Balagopal accused the Union Government of showing favouritism in the allocations. He was particularly critical of the lack of support for Vizhinjam project, which is the country’s single biggest export promotion scheme. “The Rs 24,000-crore package was a very reasonable demand made by the State. It is an accepted fact that Kerala has faced huge cuts in its share. Neither has the Budget announced plans for any major institutions in the State”.
A close look at the proposed transfers to the State in 2025-26 shows how shockingly lopsided has been the allocations of resources. Kerala, he said, should have been allocated Rs 73,000 crore last year if it had been allocated an amount corresponding to its population. But the State has had to be satisfied with only a little over Rs 32,000 crore. With the rise of close to Rs 5 lakh crore this year, the State is eligible for an additional Rs 14,258 crore. But “we will not get even Rs 4000 crore.”
The Union Government has been highlighting the announcements on Atal Tinkering Labs and broadband connectivity in government secondary schools. But this is of no use for Kerala as the State has already introduced these schemes. “Just because we have achieved something we should not be denied the benefits,” Balagopal said. The FM also voiced his grave concern over the proposal to raise the FDI limit for the insurance sector from 74% to 100 per cent.
The CPI(M) State secretariat lashed out at the Budget saying that it shows that Kerala will continue to be neglected. Despite the sustained pressure mounted by all the MPs from Kerala, with the exception of the BJP MPs, the Union Government has rejected the demand for a special package for Wayanad. The demand for Viability Gap Funding for the Vizhinjam port has met with a similar fate.
CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam in his statement has come down heavily on the Budget by claiming that it helps corporate plunder while letting down the general population by completely ignoring welfare projects including the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan is strongly critical of the neglect of Kerala. He denounced the failure to concede the State’s long-standing demand for an AIIMS. The Budget has gone hardly beyond the gimmick of raising the income tax limits and promoting it as a pro-middleclass budget. The Budget lacks any serious efforts to address the burning issues. It will also push the State into a deeper financial crisis, Satheesan added. Congress Working Committee (CWC) member Ramesh Chennithala pointed to the Union Government’s favouritism to States like Bihar while giving Kerala the cold shoulder. This is despite the fact that Kerala has two Union Ministers.
Instead of taking up the State’s cause, the two union ministers have rubbed salt into its wounds by the pouring scorn on its demands. George Kurien, for instance, is on record that if Kerala wanted more funds from the Centre, it should declare itself as backward in term of education, infrastructure and social welfare!
As if this was not enough, the other union minister from Kerala, Suresh Gopi has made a shocking statement that “high-born” individuals should head the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs instead of a member of the community, as has been the norm. The existing political approach was a systemic anomaly, which, he said, should be rectified. “A Brahmin or Naidu” could also lead the department laudably. Likewise, a person from the tribal community could head programmes for the welfare of the “upper castes”.
In a quick reaction, both the ruling and opposition fronts in the State have lambasted Suresh Gopi for the “casteist slur” aimed at marginalised communities. CPI state secretary Binoy Viswom said Gopi has become the “town crier” for the Saffron camp’s efforts to bring back the revanchist and sickening varna system. CPI(M) MP K. Radhakrishnan, who is a former minister in Kerala for the welfare of SCs, STs and backward classes, said Gopi’s words echoed the Sangh Parivar’s attempts to re-establish caste as the yardstick for Indian citizens’ respective political role and social status in society. In a way, Gopi has insulted President Draupadi Murmu by questioning her suitability for the high office, he added.
Significantly, even BJP leaders are unhappy about Gopi’s slew of political blunders. They prefer to remain anonymous. Nevertheless, they admit that Gopi’s political gaffes would administer a severe setback to the BJP’s efforts to woo the backwards and Dalits in Kerala. (IPA Service)
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