Delhi Govt Seeks 5,000 Cr Assistance From Centre To Pay Salary To Its Employees

Delhi govt has sought Rs 5,000 crore as assistance from Centre as there is shortage of revenue: Deputy CM Manish Sisodia

Image: ANI

New Delhi: Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia held a press conference on Sunday demanding Rs 5000 Cr from the central government as immediate assistance amid Coronavirus. Deputy CM Sisodia said that the Delhi state government has requested the central government to provide immediate relief required to pay salary to the state government employees. Sisodia said that due to the ongoing lockdown in the country and an increasing number of coronavirus cases, Delhi is witnessing a decline of 85% in its revenue and is not able to pay salaries to the employees. "We reviewed the Delhi govt's revenue & its minimum expenses. It needs around Rs 3500 Cr/month to pay salaries & bear office expenses. In the last 2 months, the GST collection was Rs 500 Cr each. Combining that with other sources, the govt has Rs 1735 Cr. We need Rs 7000 Cr, for 2 months: Delhi Dy CM "I would like to request the Central government to consider this situation as an emergency and provide the national capital an urgent relief of Rs 5000 Cr", Sisodia said during the press conference. The Delhi Chief Minister also tweeted in response to Sisodia's request and asked for immediate help.

केंद्र सरकार से निवेदन है कि आपदा की इस घड़ी में दिल्ली के लोगों की मदद करे। https://t.co/Z82D7UEZDo

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) May 31, 2020

Sisodia also informed that the Delhi state government has also written a letter to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman requesting her for the same. The Deputy CM also said that the Delhi did not receive the fund sanctioned under the Disaster Relief Fund. Delhi has been witnessing a surge in the number of cases for a few days and in the last 24 hours, the national capital witnessed 1163 new cases which take the total number of the state to 18,549. Delhi's recovery rate stands at 43.5% which is less than the national recovery rate and the 8075 have lost their lives due to the pandemic. The announcement of relaxations In Delhi under Unlock 1 is still awaited. Also Watch: Sisodia drops a bombshell, Delhi govt in financial trouble