• SHIMLA, 04.03.25-MLA Sanjay Awasthi has accused the Union government for discriminatory attitude towards Himachal Pradesh in releasing the funds to Himachal Pradesh. In a statement issued here today, he said that Union Government has not only failed to provide special assistance to the State, but it has also not been releasing legitimate share of funds to Himachal on time.

He said, “The Center Government has not released its share of social security pensions of nearly Rs. 65 crore for the last five quarters since January 2024 meant for this purpose. He said that the situation is not different in Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) scheme, as Rs. 252.56 crore are still pending with the Central Government since October 2024. He alleged that BJP leaders are busy in making false statements to make headlines in the newspapers, while the central government is depriving the people of Himachal of their rightful dues.

Sh. Awasthi further criticized the BJP leaders of the State for making tall claims in newspapers about central assistance, which, he said, are far from the reality. He said that Centre Government was making step-motherly treatment with the Himachal Pradesh since the Congress Party has come to power in the State. He pointed out that even during the natural disaster of 2023, the Central Government had not provided any assistance to the affected families of Himachal Pradesh. “While Uttarakhand has been provided direct financial assistance for disaster relief in the Union budget, the aid for Himachal Pradesh has been tangled in vague wording and bureaucratic complexities,” he alleged.

He also mentioned that a central team had assessed nearly Rs. 10,000 crore losses caused by the disaster in Himachal Pradesh over one and a half years ago. He said that the Center Government has not provided even single penny compensation to the State Government whereas under the leadership of Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, the state government allocated a special relief package of Rs. 4500 crore to rehabilitate all disaster-affected families.

The MLA accused that the Union government is continuously discriminating against the people of Himachal Pradesh. He said that, despite the non-cooperative attitude of the Central Government, the Congress-led State Government is committed to the welfare of the people and the development of the State.