Coming down heavily on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Tripura, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Wednesday that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) will win the next Assembly polls in Tripura.
“They are not allowing us to stay in hotels. This is too much. The State of Tripura is not even adhering to the basics of democracy and law and order. Vandalism and hooliganism is going on,” the Chief Minister said.
Ms. Banerjee said leaders of Tripura were joining the TMC in large numbers and added that, during the day, Jiten Sarkar, former Speaker of the Tripura Assembly, had written to her, expressing his willingness to join the TMC.
“They cannot stop us like this. We will win Tripura. I want that people of Tripura should get benefits of welfare schemes that we have started in West Bengal,” she said.
Over the past few weeks, Trinamool Congress leaders have been making visits to the northeastern State. During the day, the Tripura High Court refused to stay the investigation against the TMC’s general secretary and five others for allegedly obstructing the police from performing their duties.
Team to Delhi
Ms. Banerjee announced that a Ministerial team comprising State Irrigation Minister Soumen Mahapatra, Minister Manas Bhunia and other public representatives of the south Bengal region will visit Delhi and seek allocation for the Ghatal Masterplan, a mega flood protection infrastructure project for the lower Damodar basin.
Large areas of Howrah, Hooghly and Paschim Medinipur districts were flooded a few weeks ago. Ms. Banerjee blamed the calamity on the discharge of waters from the Damodar Valley Corporation, calling it “manmade floods”. Ms. Banerjee said that the State government will seek two more master plans, one for the Sundarbans, which is prone to natural disasters, and also for the Digha sea front. The Chief Minister said that the team led by Ministers will visit Delhi next week.
The Chief Minister also urged people to not throng to camps in the “Duare Sarkar” outreach initiative for implementing several schemes of the State government.
“The camps will continue till September 15 and if required, we will extend by a few days,” she said. Ms. Banerjee’s request comes at a time the “Duare Sarkar” camps are seeing large gatherings, particularly for a new scheme, the “Laksmi Bhandar”, in which a cash transfer of ₹500 per month will be given to every woman from the general category community, and ₹1,000 per month to those from reserved communities.
The Chief Minster said that 2,650 camps of “Duare Sarkar” have been set up, and 46 lakh people have approached these camps for availing benefits of the State-run schemes.
