Kolkata, Nov 4 (PTI) The BJP on Monday accused the Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal of misappropriating central funds designated for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).
The TMC denied the allegations of misappropriation and instead charged the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre with withholding funds due to the state.
Recently, protests have erupted across various districts of the state over the alleged exclusion of beneficiaries under the housing scheme for rural poor.
The Bengal BJP, which has levelled the allegations of misappropriation of central funds, has referred to a survey report of the state government to ascertain the beneficiaries of the housing scheme.
BJP state general secretary Jagannath Chattopadhyay alleged that the survey report revealed that a large number of applications seeking benefits under the housing scheme were rejected.
The BJP stated that during the first round of the BAY, the West Bengal government surveyed 18.36 lakh applications and found that 22.76 per cent of them were rejected.
In West Bengal, the PMAY is operated as the Banglar Awas Yojana (BAY).
“This high rate of rejection indicates how many false applications were submitted. This aligns with what central teams reported about the PMAY,” Chattopadhyay said.
Between 2016-17 and 2022-23, the state completed 34,189,71 houses based on sanctioned applications, but Chattopadhyay claimed these approvals lacked proper verification, suggesting that if the same 22.76 per cent rejection rate were applied, approximately 7,78,000 of those completed houses would now be deemed ineligible.
The state is currently conducting a field survey for potential beneficiaries who were initially approved to receive financial support for house construction.
Villagers have been protesting in districts like Purulia, Birbhum, Paschim Medinipur, and South 24 Parganas, particularly outside Block Development Offices (BDOs).
Many of them allege that local TMC leaders have deliberately removed their names from the list of beneficiaries.
Under PMAY, beneficiaries in plain areas are eligible for a subsidy of Rs 1.2 lakh, while those in hilly or tribal regions receive Rs 1.3 lakh, distributed in two instalments.
The first round of funding for these beneficiaries is expected to be released in December.
However, the West Bengal government claims it is funding the Banglar Awas Yojana itself, as the central government has allegedly stopped its contributions.
TMC leader Kunal Ghosh dubbed the accusations of corruption as baseless.
“The state government had compiled a list of eligible beneficiaries and submitted it to the Centre. After a thorough investigation by central teams, it was determined that there were no major irregularities in the housing scheme. However, funds have not been released. It was our government that decided to pay the beneficiaries from the state exchequer,” he said. PTI PNT NN
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