- Abhijit Nath, NET Correspondent, Tripura
Agartala, December 25, 2021 : The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Politburo member and Tripura’s leader of opposition Manik Sarkar on Saturday urged the state government to look and examine the services that are being given to the people of this state.
The people of Tripura are alleged to be immensely suffering and deprived of proper electricity services, education, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G), issues of urban local bodies, fundamental facilities, etc during the past four years, he added.
In a press conference here in Agartala city on Saturday afternoon, Sarkar said “A youth had filed a PIL in the High Court of Tripura regarding a project under Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY) where state government’s PSU- TSECL had handed over the project work of Rs 135 crore to a company which is having fake certificates. Although an engineer of TSECL tried to clarify the allegations but could meet up the clarifications properly. Here, the government needs to give clarification about the actual matter”.
He alleged “Some media reported that the duty charge of electricity tariff had been hike by 5 percent and here again, the consumers are being suffered. Moreover, load shedding takes place often and people across the state have to stay in darkness”.
“Meanwhile, certain power sub-divisions are handed over to private companies. Complaints are being raised from various corners of the state, but whom to inform. Even the amount in billing posted to consumers had hiked by many times which are completely unexpected”.
“Tripura had acquired the position of self-sufficient in terms of electricity generation after much fighting during the Leftist regime. But now, consumers are suffering. This situation cannot be allowed to continue. Government should look into the public utility services”, he added.
Talking in terms of MGNREGA under the Rural Development department, Sarkar alleged that there is a deviation of huge amount as per the observation of social audit during the three and a half financial years i.e. 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21 and half of 2021-22. “The government issued a press release mentioning that the observance of Social Audit is at initial stage and allegations were solved with discussion. But comparing the social audit and complaints, more than a half are not solved yet and a huge amount is involved in it,” he added.
CPIM Politburo member further alleged that various allegations of corruption are coming up during the regime of the present BJP-IPFT coalition government. According to the guidelines of MGNREGA, machinery cannot be used for work, but here, it is alleged that machinery is being used which is hindering the income of poor and poverty-trodden people of this society. The government need to look into this matter attentively.
Speaking about the recently launched ‘Vidyajyoti’, one of the reforms of School Education department, Sarkar said “Lakhs of students are studying in government schools, then why only students near to a lakh are getting the opportunity to avail this scheme’s facility. Why others are being deprived? The government should see urban and rural with the same eye and cannot be discriminated”.
Tripura’s leader of opposition urged the government and newly formed committees in urban local bodies to help the interim vendors and hawkers selling vegetables, fishes and meats by arranging them an alternate place for their business. He also urged not to evict these hawkers all of a sudden.
Lastly speaking on the Omicron issue, Sarkar further urged the government to install a WGS machine at the earliest.
