India
If Kerala was allowed to take assistance from other countries, it would have been able to raise a huge amount. But, the central government did not allow it, said Pinarayi Vijayan.
Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan accused the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government of discriminating against the state. He also asserted that denying permission to ministers from the state to go abroad with respect to flood relief work could only be seen as a “move” against Kerala, while pointing out that no state should be discriminated.
Vijayan commented on the same as he returned from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after a five-day visit and pointed out that the permission denial is the latest example of the strikes against Kerala especially when UAE promised to help.
Noting that disasters had struck other states too, he said, when Gujarat was hit by natural calamities, permission was granted for accepting foreign aid.
"If Kerala was allowed to take assistance from other countries, it would have been able to raise a huge amount. But the central government did not allow it.
"It was in continuation of this stand that the Centre turned down the plea of the state to send its ministers abroad to mobilise funds from expatriates," Vijayan added.
He further said it was no secret that the UAE government had promised a Rs 700-crore aid for flood relief work in Kerala.
Following his visit, the state was hoping that it would be able to mobilise much more assistance, the chief minister said.
The issue of acceptance of aid from the UAE had triggered a row, with the Centre deciding not to accept it for relief work, even as the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the opposition Congress in Kerala had come out against the government's move.
While the Centre had approved Vijayan's foreign trip, it had declined permission to 17 of the 20 ministers from Kerala, who had also planned to visit different countries in the Gulf and Europe to mobilise funds.
Kerala had suffered massive damage in the torrential rains that lashed the state in August, claiming 493 lives and leaving a trail of destruction.
The LDF government in the southern state had decided to raise Rs 15,900 crore as loan from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and other funding agencies to rebuild the prime sectors of the state.
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