The issue of non-release of funds by the Centre and State governments to local bodies saw heated discussion at the Zilla Parishad general body meeting of erstwhile Karimnagar district here on Monday.
As soon as the meeting was convened under the leadership of ZP Chairperson Tula Uma, the Congress ZPTC members carrying placards went to the podium and demanded the release of funds to the Zilla Parishad by the Centre and State governments. They also demanded that the State government should release seigniorage charges of ₹125 crore to the ZP.
At this juncture, the ZP chairperson stated the non-release of funds to the ZP and local bodies was being discussed at all levels by the State government and added that they were planning to represent the issue with the Centre also. The State government stopped paying seigniorage charges to the zilla parishads when the Congress was in power.
State funding
The State government was taking up all developmental works in the villages despite the fact that the Centre had not released funds, the ZP Chairperson said. During the discussion of agriculture sector issue, the ZPTC members, cutting across party lines, complained that the banks were deducting loan dues from Asara pension amount of the beneficiaries.
They also flayed the bankers for deduction of amount from pension in spite of government waiving crop loans. MLC P. Sudhakar Reddy asked the Collectors to convene a meeting with the bankers and agricultural officials and take appropriate measures to stop recovery of farm loan amount from Asara pension amount. Some members said the bankers were providing tractors on subsidy only to influential farmers denying the same to the real beneficiaries following the pressures from the legislators and ministers.
Telangana State Cooperative Apex Bank (TSCAB) chairman K. Ravinder Rao said that they were taking all measures to help the farmers during this rabi season by opening procurement centres by primary agricultural cooperative societies (PACS) along with the women IKP groups.
The ZPTC members also complained about the delay in the payment of wages for the labourers engaged in the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.
