West Bengal Chief Mamata Banerjee has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging his intervention to release funds under the National Health Mission (NHM) to the State. In her letter dated November 29, Ms. Banerjee said that the NHM has withheld release of funds due to non-compliance with colour branding guidelines for Health and Wellness Centres, despite other conditions being fulfilled.
Poor affected
“ I would earnestly request you to kindly intervene for immediate release of NHM funds to West Bengal and for removal of specific colour branding conditionalities for Health & Wellness Centres, so that poor people do not suffer from lack of health services,” the Chief Minister wrote. The letter comes amidst a tussle between the Union government and West Bengal government over denial of central funds to key schemes like MGNREGA. Over the past few days the Chief Minister has been raising the pitch on a plan to paint Central government institutions including metro stations and health facilities ‘saffron’.
In the letter, Ms Banerjee said that there are around eleven thousand functional Health & Wellness-Centres benefiting more than three lakh people every day.
“These buildings have been constructed since 2011 in State colours. It is most unfortunate that recently, the Union--Ministry of Health & Family Welfare withheld funds under National ‘Health Mission due to non-compliance with certain colour branding-guidelines for Health & Wellness Centres, despite other conditionalities-being fulfilled,” the Chief Minister said.
Ms. Banerjee has written several letters to the Prime Minister demanding release of central funds for key flagship schemes in the State including MGNREGA and PM Awaas Yojana. The Chief Minister had met the Prime Minister and raised these issue with him.
