Kerala BJP Chief K Surendran Questions Wayanad Relief Expenses by CM Pinarayi Vijayan
Kozhikode (Kerala) [India], September 17: Kerala BJP Chief K Surendran has raised concerns about the accuracy of the figures presented by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s government regarding the relief expenses for Wayanad. Surendran suggested that these figures might be inaccurate or manipulated.
Surendran emphasized that CM Vijayan should disclose the actual expenses incurred for the natural calamities in Wayanad. He stated, “Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan should clearly explain what the actual expense is in Wayanad natural calamities? He should tell what the government has spent from SDRF and what they need more of. The government has spent nothing for voluntary workers.”
The BJP Chief alleged that the government’s figures might be inflated or fabricated, accusing them of either trying to deceive the central government or misappropriating funds in the name of the Wayanad landslide.
On Monday, Surendran accused the Kerala government of presenting exaggerated relief expenditures to the High Court concerning the Wayanad landslides. Congress leader VD Satheesan also criticized the Kerala government, stating that they did not follow the SDRF rules while submitting a memorandum to the government of India regarding the Wayanad landslides.
Satheesan explained, “Whenever a state government is submitting a memorandum before the government of India, they have to follow the SDRF rules. Unfortunately, they have not followed the SDRF rules. It will lose the credibility of the rehabilitation process. For example, for the burial of the dead bodies a huge amount was shown. But that property was given by a Harrison Malayalam plantation, the equipment was given by some other contractors, and all the burial process were done by the volunteers.”
He also mentioned that the Kerala government is not putting enough pressure on the central government to provide advance financial assistance for natural calamities. Satheesan said, “Usually whenever a natural calamity happens, the central government should provide some advance to the state government. We are not seeking the distress relief front. It is common. We expect special financial assistance. This is the way international calamity in a bigger ground is happening. But unfortunately they are not giving any advance and they are not saying anything on this thing. So the government has to review the memorandum and to correct it.”
Doubts Revealed
Kerala BJP Chief -: The Kerala BJP Chief is the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state of Kerala. BJP is one of the major political parties in India.
K Surendran -: K Surendran is a politician and the current chief of the BJP in Kerala. He is questioning the relief expenses reported by the Kerala government.
Wayanad -: Wayanad is a district in the state of Kerala, known for its beautiful hills and forests. It has been affected by natural disasters, needing relief funds.
CM Pinarayi Vijayan -: CM Pinarayi Vijayan is the Chief Minister of Kerala. He is the head of the state government and responsible for its administration.
Relief expenses -: Relief expenses are the money spent by the government to help people affected by disasters like floods or earthquakes.
Transparency -: Transparency means being open and clear about actions and decisions, so that everyone can see and understand what is happening.
Congress leader VD Satheesan -: VD Satheesan is a leader of the Congress party in Kerala. Congress is another major political party in India.
SDRF rules -: SDRF stands for State Disaster Response Fund. These are rules about how states should use money set aside for disaster relief.
Central government -: The central government is the national government of India, which makes decisions for the whole country.
Advance financial assistance -: Advance financial assistance is money given ahead of time to help deal with emergencies or disasters.
