Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Monday, has reached New Delhi with detailed statistics on the total accumulated dues of the state from the Centre under various heads. This is the first time she is going to the national capital after taking oath as the CM for the third consecutive term. Before leaving for New Delhi, the Chief Minister had a detailed meeting with the members of her cabinet.
At the meeting, she briefed the different ministers on how to run the different departments during her absence. Most importantly, she gathered detailed statistics of the total accumulated dues that are pending from the Union government. The Bengal CM is most likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi during her visit to Delhi. In that meeting, she will present the details of the dues to PM Modi.
State government sources said that during her stay in the national capital, she will be in constant touch with the bureaucrats in the state. "She has entrusted additional duties to veteran ministers like Partha Chattopadhyay, Subrata Mukhopadhyay, and Firhad Hakim for the interim period," a member of the state cabinet said on the condition of anonymity.
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The Chief Minister's visit to New Delhi has immense political significance. At the same time, the visit is also important for the CM in getting the accumulated dues from the Union government cleared. "Precisely, the Chief Minister sought the details of the state's total dues in the cabinet meeting on Monday. She is carrying those details to Delhi,” the member of the state cabinet said.
Mamata Banerjee is scheduled to meet the Prime Minister on July 28. Sources said that in that meeting CM is expected to present those statistics to the Prime Minister. As per the latest information available, the state government will receive around Rs 60,000 crore on account of GST compensation. She will request the Prime Minister to clear the GST compensation at the earliest.
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She is also going to urge the PM to ensure a steady and speedy supply of vaccines to the state in the backdrop of apprehensions of the third wave of Covid-19. To expand Trinamool Congress' footprint across the nation, by forging a coalition of like-minded parties, and getting the state's accumulated dues from the Centre are the three main goals of the CM's visit to New Delhi. Now, it remains to be seen how much does she will succeed in her mission?
