State will implement ‘Ghatal Master Plan’ within 2 to 3 years, says CM
The Chief Minister had also discussed the issue with the Chief Secretary B P Gopalika and the Irrigation secretary Prabhat Mishra
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during her tour of West Midnapore asserted that the state government will implement the Ghatal Master Plan within 2 to 3 years.
She was attending a public distribution in the district on Tuesday during which she inaugurated and also laid the foundation stones of projects altogether worth Rs 1,719 crore.
Banerjee had earlier announced that the state government would implement the Ghatal Master Plan with its own resources as the Centre is yet to respond to the longstanding demand, which local MP Deepak Adhikari (Dev) tried to push in the last 10 years, of the flood-prone area. The Chief Minister had also discussed the issue with Chief
Secretary B P Gopalika and the Irrigation secretary Prabhat Mishra.
“We will not wait for the Centre. We have waited for so long. We will implement the Ghatal Master Plan within 2 to 3 years. People from several parts including Panskura I and Panskura II in East Midnapore, Ghatal sub-division in West
Midnapore will be protected from flood once the project is implemented. We will not beg before the Centre. Let them not do anything for Bengal. They (Centre) do not do anything for Bengal,” Banerjee said.
She also said that the state government has spent Rs 700 crore on the KapaleshwariKeleghai project. The Chief
Minister stated that the Raghunathpur-Dankuni-Haldia freight corridor is coming up and industries will be set up on both sides. An industrial corridor is also coming between Kharagpur and More Gram. Bengal is number 1 in MSME. Banerjee on Tuesday inaugurated 126 projects and laid the foundation of 138 projects.
The Chief Minister said that drinking water will reach 10.42 lakh households in Midnapore out of which 2.84 households already have received drinking water supply. “We are providing pipes for laying water lines and we are also doing maintenance works. Some Delhi leaders and also some traitors are coming here and saying that they are doing the water projects. The Bengal government is spending 70 per cent of the project costs. Few days ago, they said that we have swallowed Rs 43,000 crore funds of Awas Yojana. From 2014-15 to 2021-22 Centre gave Rs 29,834 crore while we had spent Rs 20,000. State government also provided land for the projects. The Centre has withheld funds for 3 years. If the Centre does not provide funds for Awas Yojana till May, we will start constructing houses for 11 lakh people in a phased manner.”