Sitharaman claims Centre released all funds due to Karnataka on time

New Delhi, Feb 7 (PTI) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said the Centre has timely released all funds due to the Karnataka government as has been recommended by the Finance Commission from time to time.

In addition, Karnataka has also been provided interest-free loan for 50 years for undertaking infrastructure development activities, Sitharaman said while replying to a debate on the Union Interim Budget, Jammu and Kashmir Interim Budget and Supplementary Demands for Grants.

The budgets and relevant appropriation bills were approved by the Lok Sabha by voice vote.

"I want to assure the House that whatever has been recommended by the Finance Commission, I followed to the last word," she said wondering "where is the Karnataka denied money".

Reeling out numbers, she said, as per the recommendation of 13th Finance Commission, Karnataka was given Rs 61,691 crore while Rs 1,51,309 crore were provided as recommended by the 14th Finance Commission.

She said Rs 1,29,854 crore has been provided to the state for four years as against the five-year term of the 15th Finance Commission.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has alleged "injustice" meted out by the Centre on devolution of tax share to the state and staged a dharna in Delhi in support of the demand.

While referring to the price rise, she said retail inflation is stable and has come down within the tolerance band as a result of the steps taken by the government to check price rise, especially in perishable commodities.

India's retail inflation has declined from an average of 6.8 per cent in April-December 2022 to 5.5 per cent in the corresponding period of 2023. The retail inflation is now stable and within the notified tolerance band of 2 per cent to 6 per cent.

The minister said that in order to check the volatility in prices of onion, the government has progressively increased its buffer size from 1 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) in 2020-21 to 7 LMT in 2023-24. As of February 3, 2024, a total of 6.32 LMT of onion was procured, and 3.96 LMT of Grade-A onion was released through retail sales, e-Nam auction and bulk sales.

India has also brought the branded 'Bharat Dal' through which Chana Dal is made available at Rs 60 per kg in a single pack and Rs 55 per kg for a 30 kg pack. 2.97 lakh metric tonnes of Chana have been sold already as of January 30, 2024. 'Bharat Dal', which is coming at a concessional price, is available in all retail markets.

Retail inflation, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), in December 2023, stood at 5.69 per cent.

Sitharaman also said while the workforce has gone up, the unemployment rate has declined significantly. She also added, that the number of people enrolled in the EPFO has gone up substantially. PTI