Centre Has Given Every Penny To Karnataka, Says FM Sitharaman On State Dues

The minister said that tax devolution increased from 2014 to 2024 by 258 per cent, stating that this increase remained 3.5 times higher than the 10-year rule of the UPA

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman asserted on Sunday that the Central Government has cleared all the pending balances of Karnataka. The minister said that tax devolution increased from 2014 to 2024 by 258 per cent, stating that this increase remained 3.5 times higher than the 10-year rule of the UPA. 

“Every penny by the Central government that is due to Karnataka is given and given on time to the state government,” the minister noted. She added that the grants to the states have climbed 273 per cent, which remained 3.7 times higher than the UPA government. 

The Finance Minister noted that during the 2004-14 period, the funds distributed per year to Karnataka touched Rs 81,795 crore in tax devolution. “Between 2014-2024, tax devolution paid to the state is nearly Rs 2.93 lakh crore,” Sitharaman said.

The statement comes immediately after the Karnataka government gave a petition to the apex court against the central government regarding the delay in the distribution of drought relief funds for the state, reported Business Today. 

The state government claimed on Saturday that the Centre failed to release funds even five months after the ministerial team submitted its report on the state’s drought condition. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah noted, “Today, we have filed a writ petition under Article 32 with the Supreme Court against the Centre, seeking the release of the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF)”.

The CM shared that the state has been affected by severe drought in the recent months and is entitled for relief funds from the Centre, according to the Disaster Management Act, 2005.