Mamata Banerjee reacts to BJP’s false allegations

Mamata Banerjee reacts to BJP’s false allegations

Posted on February 2, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

Reaction of Trinamool Chairperson and Bangla Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee to BJP’s false allegations:

The death knell of his government has been sounded. Expiry date of Modi Government is here. He has ruled for five years with the help of CBI, IT and ED. They have orchestrated riots and killed people.

They have destroyed the economy with demonetisation and hurried implementation of GST. This is a fascist government. He has no courtesy. He does not know the manner in which a PM must speak. His arrogance will soon end.

His political career started with Godhra riots. What happened to Haren Pandya? Victims of 2002 riots have not got justice. He lacks humanity and compassion. I feel ashamed.

We organised United India Rally. Does he have any allies left? He is busy with his own fashion. He even reads his speeches from a teleprompter. He is good for nothing. He promised to bring back black money. What happened to the promise of Rs 15 lakh?

We are in power for two more years. They are on their way out. They are bringing leaders from all over India to address rallies in Bengal. Had they given even a portion of this money to Bengal, people would have benefitted.

We provide rice at Rs 2/kg. We have schemes like Kanyashree, Sabooj Sathi, Samabyathi, Baitarani and many other schemes.

They want us to pass the Citizenship Bill. They are driving Bengalis out. Biharis and Nepalis are also being persecuted. 22 lakh Bengalis have been left out of NRC. We will not allow them to incite riots between people. We will not allow north-eastern States to burn. We will not allow sectarian violence. They have to withdraw the Citizenship Amendment Bill.

BJP lacks leaders in Bengal. They brought people from outside with so many special trains.

Twelve thousand farmers have committed suicide during Modi rule in India.

I respected Atal Ji. But many of the current leaders of BJP are not worthy of respect.

Demonetisation is a big scam. Jan Dhan is a big scam. Rafale is a big scam.

BJP is destroying the country by promoting riots and violence. Democracy is under threat. Agencies are being misused. Political opponents are being targeted.

The opposition parties have one aim – Modi hatao, Desh bachao.

Just because he was questioned by CBI, everyone else has to be questioned too? His role in the riots was known fact, hence he was questioned.

Bengal has withdrawn from Ayushman Bharat. Health is a state subject. So are education and agriculture. We have Swasthya Sathi scheme. Healthcare is free in Bengal. They only speak about welfare of people during elections.

They are copying our schemes, but failing miserably while implementing them. For example, the budget of Beti Bachao per state is Rs 3-4 crore. The budget for Kanyashree scheme in Bengal is Rs 7000 crore.

Centre promised that they will double farmers’ income by 2022. We have already tripled farmers’ income. We have waived off khajna tax on agricultural land. We have started a new scheme ‘Krishak Bandhu’ scheme. What has he done for farmers and labourers?

2 crore people lost their jobs under Modi. We have reduced unemployment by 40%. We are No. 1 in skill development. He must speak on facts. He is uneducated.

They have not taken any action on Deocha Pachami, Sagar Port or Tajpur port. Bengal has been deprived. No new trains have been allocated for the State.

The new announcement on tax relief is also a hoax to mislead people. The devil lies in the details. They know they will not remain in power. Hence, they are saying anything they want.

From the judiciary to the media, no one has been spared. What is the reason behind this arrogance?

Bengali culture has taught us to live with our heads held high.

They are jealous of the development and progress of Bengal. Where were they when the State was suffering during the Left rule?

BJP and Left have become one. Don’t be surprised if the participants at today’s rallies are seen at Brigade tomorrow.

Chit funds were created in the 1980s. Why was no action taken till 2011? They have destroyed the country in the last four years. We do not need their lectures.

People are tired of riot syndicate, lynching syndicate, gau-rakshak syndicate. He is the leader of syndicate of the agencies.

Total loan amount to farmers by State Govt to see substantial increase

Posted on February 2, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

The Bangla Government has decided to increase the total amount of loan it provides to farmers for farming-related purposes by a significant Rs 3,000 crore. While at the end of financial year 2018-19, the estimated amount would stand at Rs 5,000 crore, in financial year 2019-120, the government would be providing a total of Rs 8,000 crore.

About 90 lakh families would be benefitted as a result of the disbursal of the loans, to be disbursed by agricultural cooperative banks at a rate of interest of 7 per cent.

As a big incentive to farmers, those who would pay repay the total amount, consisting of the capital and interest, within the stipulated time frame, would have 3 per cent of the interest paid back to them. The amount of 3 per cent would be transferred electronically to the farmer’s bank account as soon as the total amount is repaid.

In terms of amount, loans are provided depending on the crops. As examples, for aman rice cultivation, Rs 15,000 per acre is provided, for boro paddy cultivation, Rs 45,000 per acre is provided, while for potato cultivation, Rs 60,000 per acre is provided.

In terms of types of loans, there are three types: one-year loans, short-term loans and long-term loans. For one-year loans, as the name suggests, the loan, along with the interest, has to be repaid within one year. Short-terms loans are for a period less than one year. Long-term loans can span several years; for example, for buying a tractor, a farmer can get a loan whose repayment period can span from seven to nine years.

To ensure that farmers get the loans through Kisan Credit Cards (by adopting which means loans can be transferred electronically), in financial year 2018-19, the State Government has set up banking infrastructure at 3,000 primary agricultural cooperative societies (PACS), including setting up micro-ATMs. Rs 400 crore has been allocated for the purpose.

For leasing of farming machinery on easy terms, the government is creating machinery hubs at total cost of Rs 1,000 crore. Tractors, paddy cleaning machines and several other machines and tools crucial for making farmers’ work easier can be hired from these hubs.

Then, on December 31, 2018, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced a few other crucial measures meant to make farmers’ lives easier. These were her New Year gifts to them.

The Krishak Bandhu Scheme was introduced, which is made up of two components. Krishak Bandhu 1 is in the form of an assurance model, wherein if a farmer dies between the ages of 18 and 60, due to any cause, the family would receive a one-time grant of Rs 2 lakh. Krishak Bandhu 2 is in the form of a yearly grant to farmers’ families, of Rs 5,000 per acre per annum in two instalments.

Besides these, another announcement was also made. The full premium under the crop insurance scheme, Bangla Fasal Bima Yojana (BFBY) would henceforth be handled by the State Government, which means that the 20 per cent paid by the Centre too would now be paid by the State. The latter was already paying the farmers’ share of the premium for the last few years besides, of course, its own share.

Source: Aajkaal

Bangla Fasal Bima Yojana: State Govt to pay 100% of the premium

Posted on February 2, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

Starting from the next financial year, that is, 2019-20, the State Government has decided to pay the full amount of the premium to farmers for the crop insurance scheme, Bangla Fasal Bima Yojana (BFBY). The full premium includes the Centre’s share, the State’s share and the farmers’ share.

This was announced recently during the course of a press conference by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Till now, the Bangla Government used to pay 80 per cent of the premium, that is, the State Government’s share and the farmers’ share.

Now, the State Government has decided that it would no longer take the help of the Centre as, despite paying the lion’s share, the Centre used to take all the credit by making it mandatory for the prime minister’s picture to be there on all promotional and other materials for the scheme.

The State Agriculture has already completed the procedures required for the new structure of the scheme. The State Government has also brought in certain changes to the scheme to make it more attractive for farmers so that more and more of them opt for it.

Farmers would now be able to get their crops insured against less earnings due to loss in production as a result of unfavourable weather or damages due to heavy rain, fire, lightning, storms, cyclones, typhoons, tornadoes, hailstorms, floods, droughts, and damages by insects and organisms like fungi, bacteria, viruses, etc.

In recent years, among the help provided by the State Government to farmers include paying almost 30 lakh farmers about Rs 1,200 crore for damages to their crops due to floods and droughts, waiving off of the agricultural tax and mutation fee, and the latest, introduction of the Krishak Bandhu Scheme.

Source: Sangbad Pratidin

Bangla Govt ensuring farmers’ welfare with old-age pension

Posted on February 2, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

Besides the recent announcements of the Krishak Bandhu Scheme and the full payment of subsidies for crop insurance by the State Government, and the earlier announcements of the waiving off duties on mutation and of agricultural tax, another announcement has been made – pension for farmers.

The pension amount would be Rs 1,000 per farmer.

Listed below are the rules for the pension, as recently published in a government advertisement:

Minimum age should be 60 years, and for differently-abled farmers, 55 years
Must be a resident of Bangla for the preceding 10 years
To be a farmer, must own a maximum of 1 acre, and to be a bargadar, must own a maximum of 2 acres, or can be a landless labourer
Should not have any other source of income or not have anyone to take care of
Should not be drawing any emoluments or pension through any other scheme of either the State or the Central Government

This is a farcical budget: Dr Amit Mitra

Posted on February 1, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

Dr Amit Mitra, the Finance Minister of Bangla today did a Facebook LIVE session to share his views on the Union Budget 2019. He called it a farcical budget. He said this was a desperate attempt to sail through the Lok Sabha elections.

Highlights of his speech:

A party which is drowning, is clutching at straws desperately to stay afloat. This Budget is a desperate scream for survival. They know they are in power for a month more, yet they have made grand announcements.
They announced schemes which they will not be able to implement. This is nothing but jumla. They have made announcements with an eye on votes.
Look at the allocation for MGNREGA. The funds have been decreased, compared to revised estimates. They think no one will see the fine print. Trinamool IS reading between the lines.
Swachh Bharat Mission – so much has been said about this scheme. Nadia was the first ODF district in the country and got UN recognition. The budget has been slashed by 25%
Budget for rural development was Rs 1.38 lakh crore last year. It is the same this year. If inflation is taken into account, the budget has decreased.
The budget for the umbrella scheme for SC/ST communities has been slashed by 39%. In the same way, the budget of skill development has been decreased. The budget for welfare of vulnerable groups has been slashed by 20%.
There is so much noise about Ujjwala scheme. The budget has been reduced by 15%. They thought no one will read the fine print. So much has been said about energy. The budget has been reduced by 4.4%.
They made an announcement about paying pension to farmers in installments. But who will pay? The next government. Modi government will only take credit.
They will beat the drums about raising the tax exemption limit. But who will implement it? The next government. They are only concerned about votes.
I have seen this jugglery with numbers in my life. The chairman of the statistical commission resigned because the report on unemployment was not being published.
As per the report of NSSO, unemployment has risen in the country at a rate of 6.1%. The government is manipulating data.
Some newspapers still have the ability to publish that report. Now the cat is out of the bag that unemployment has increased by 6.1%, a percentage that has not happened in the last 45 years. The highest in 45 years! Can they hide this?
Why did the RBI governor quit before his tenure was over? Everyone knows that he was being pressurised and controlled, the CBI director was removed at midnight. It’s the same picture wherever they have interfered.
Banks have apparently been restructured, we heard in today’s budget. NPAs, which are a yardstick of the banks’ health, was at Rs 2 lakh crores in 2014. We were all very worried that so much debt had not been recovered. What would happen to the banks? What is today’s picture? That NPA has gone up to Rs 10 lakh crores, which is 5 times in 5 years.
We heard in the Budget that three banks don’t need corrective action measures as their health has returned. All lies! Will people believe them after seeing the NPA figures?
The same scenario exists in case of facts. Several autonomous institutions – from the RBI to the CBI or the statistical commission – are being controlled. Everywhere there is a fascist tendency. They want to control everything.
This is a depressing budget. They desperately want to survive by clutching at straws. Will people allow that? The farmer who has been hit by bad times, will he forget? People have not forgotten about demonetisation. Small traders have been hit by GST. Even the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce has said that 40% small enterprises have closed down in Surat.
They are trying to hide their failure in controlling fiscal deficit with a jumla budget. The fiscal deficit target of 3.3% will not be met; in fact, fiscal deficit will be around 3.4%. The minister himself admitted.
If you read the budget speech, everything will appear hunky-dory. The deeper you dig, the reality will be apparent. They have reduced the funds for most welfare schemes. They just want to show that they are working for the people.
India once had the Planning Commission. Today we have Niti Ayog talking about data. Why are they speaking about something which is the domain of Finance Commission and Statistical Office? There is one person in the Niti Ayog who speaks in government’s favour. He is being made to speak. People will give a befitting reply in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
The annual average income of farmers has tripled in Bangla. Even the Centre has not been able to challenge this fact.
I believe this is a farcical budget. A desperate attempt to clutch at straws before drowning.

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Twenty Five things Mamata Banerjee said about the Union Budget 2019

Posted on February 1, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

1. We feel this is an expiry budget. This is a budget of desperation. This budget will not be implemented.

2. The tenure of this government will be over in one month. After elections, a new government will come and present a new budget.

3. I am not an economist, but I have practical knowledge and ideas. Nobody knows what is the financial situation of the country. It is obvious, economic emergency is going on in the country.

4. Where will this money come from? How will it be managed?

5. This government has no moral authority to put forth this budget. After expiry is there any value? This is a value-less budget.

6. Why has this government not announced a single agenda for farmers for the last four and a half years?

7. We have already started the ‘Krishak Bandhu’ scheme. A similar scheme has been announced today. Why did not announce these schemes earlier?

8. We have a successful scheme ‘Swasthya Sathi’ for health insurance. We have opted out of ‘Ayushman Bharat’ scheme as Modi is using it for his own publicity.

9. They have not given any extra amount for MGNREGA scheme. The funds are lower than revised estimate. People are not getting their dues.

10. They have decreased funds for Swachh Bharat Mission by 25 per cent.

11. Within the last one year, two crore jobs have been lost. And now there has been a cut of 13.4% in Skill Development Budget. This is a show-off budget.

12. Scheduled castes and scheduled tribes are deprived sections. And there has been a significant decrease in funds allocated.

13. Other vulnerable groups – there has been a 20.8% decrease in allocation.

14. Ujjwala Scheme – decrease of 14.9% in allocation.

15. NPAs have increased five times. Banking system has been destroyed.

16. They say they will give loans in 59 seconds. Who will get the loans?

17. Allocation for energy sector is less by 4.4%.

18. The doctor has come after death. This budget is a cheating. All show-off.

19. Central government and State government are both elected by the people. They cannot announce programmes on subjects which come under the State List. They are running a parallel government. This is against federal structure.

20. They are promoting schemes with their own pictures, although States are funding these schemes. The Centre collects taxes from the States and gives us back a pittance.

21. I thought they might even announce transferring Rs 15 lakh to people.

22. This is a farce. This is nothing but a BJP manifesto to cheat the people.

23. Even I can be arrested for voicing my opinion on the Budget today. Tomorrow they may even send a notice to the person who cooks at my home. Keep sending notices. Let me see how many you can send.

24. Fight us politically. Why are you attacking us on personal front? Why are you humiliating people?

25. Before announcing a scheme, one must make sure there are enough funds. Even while chalking out programmes in our State we do so. Where will they get the money?

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Food festival, Milan Utsav to be held at Park Circus

Posted on February 1, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

This year, the State Government is organizing the Milan Utsav festival which will showcase some of the choicest foods from a wide range of cuisines in Kolkata.

The food festival will be held from February 1 to 4, 2019 at Park Circus Maidan from 12 noon till 9 pm in the evening.

The specialty of this food festival highlights the cultural confluence of various minority communities of Bangla. Cuisines of traditional specialties of different religious communities will be available at the festival.

The Muslim community is being represented by bakkarkhani, nihari, paya, nankhatai, kanji, biryani, kebab, etc.

The Christian community is being represented by cake, chicken and mutton roast, kopta curry, rose cookie, vindaloo, bread pudding, caramel custard, etc.

The Sikh community is being represented by makai ka roti, sarson ka saag, aloo paratha, muli paratha, fullgobi paratha, lassi, halwa, etc.

The Jain community is being represented by dhokla, khandui, unjiu, thepla, etc.

The Parsi community is being represented by dhansak, fish patia, papeta-par-eedu, dar-ni-pari, malido, lagan-nu-custard, etc.

The Buddhist community is being represented by Tibetan momo, various sweets, etc.

Apart from it being a food festival, a major attraction of the Milan Utsav is the presence of stalls for job fair, career counselling and job oriented counselling. Moreover, a health check-up centre is also being set up for the benefit of the visitors.

Source: Ei Samay

Digha-Mandarmani Saikat Sarani to open soon

Posted on February 1, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

Digha, Shankarpur, Tajpur and Mandarmani, and other smaller places along the way, would soon be much more accessible from each other with the completion of construction of the planned 29 km long two-laned highway called Saikat Sarani.

A brainchild of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the whole project would cost Rs 182 crore. Sankarpur and Tajpur lie between Digha and Mandarmani, all located in Purba Medinipur district.

The section between Digha and Mandarmani would be completed in six months, and this would reduce the distance between the two popular beach spots by 12 km. The present connector between Digha and Mandarmani is a roundabout route along National Highway 116B.

Three bridges would lie along the highway – at Nayakali Mandir, about 5 km from Digha, at Jalda near Mandarmani and at Saulat near Mandarmani.

This new highway would result in higher flow of tourists, and consequently, in the improvement of the local economy.

Source: The Times of India

Bangla CM inaugurates Biswa Bangla Gate in New Town

Posted on January 31, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

The beautiful 55-metre tall steel-and-glass Biswa Bangla Gate at Narkelbagan More (Rabindra Tirtha crossing) in New Town was inaugurated today by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. It is already a talk-of-the-town and is expected to become a landmark, being located on the route taken for travelling from the airport to Kolkata via Rajarhat.

The CM inaugurated the gate on the sidelines of the inauguration of 43rd International Kolkata Book Fair.

This is the culmination of Mamata Banerjee’s dream of a gate as a landmark for Kolkata, like India Gate for Delhi and Gateway of India for Mumbai.

The structure has been designed by experts from IIT Mumbai. The gate is in the form of two steel arches intersecting at 55 m above the ground, holding up a circular glass-fronted viewing gallery 25m from the ground. On the circular wall of the gallery are pictures of various locations of Kolkata, cultural icons and wildlife of Bangla, etc. The viewing gallery is 200m in circumference and holds a restaurant, to be run by HIDCO.

The way to the viewing gallery and restaurant is via two glass lifts and two sets of spiral stairs, all of which are embedded into the legs of the two arches. The gallery can hold 45 people at a time. There is a fee for accessing the viewing gallery

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“Don’t believe in violence; to accept views of others is our tradition”: Abhishek Banerjee

Posted on January 31, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

National President of All India Trinamool Youth Congress and Trinamool MP from Diamond Harbour, Abhishek Banerjee inaugurated a decorative gate at the entrance of the Boro Kachari temple in the South 24 Paraganas on January 30, 2019.

The gate has been constructed with financial assistance from the state Tourism department where a comprehensive plan worth 56 lakh has been taken up to beautify the surrounding areas.

In a statement, Abhishek Banerjee said, “I practice the rituals of Hinduism privately and I believe that when it comes to work, my religion is humanism.”

He also added that Hinduism teaches people to be tolerant and accept views of others: “We do not believe in violence. We accept and respect the views of others and this is our tradition and heritage.”

The Boro Kachari temple is a budding major tourism hub. The Gajon Utsav and Neel Utsav are celebrated here every year in the month of April, while thousands of devotees offer their prayers every Tuesday and Saturday throughout the year.

It took approximately 10 months for the completion of this ornamental gate.

According to history, thousands of farmers took shelter near the temple when the Marathas had planned an attack on Kolkata. A general belief persists among the people in the area, that Baba Boro Kachari protects the villagers from evil.