Opposition Congress in Himachal Pradesh today slammed the BJP government for pushing the state into a debt trap through "rampant" borrowings.
"The total debt of the hill state has reached a whopping Rs 27,000 crore and it's rising because of rampant borrowings by the BJP government," state Congress president and MLA Kaul Singh Thakur said in the assembly while speaking on the budget presented in the House for 2010-11.
The state's debt has risen by Rs 4,070 cr in past two years of BJP rule, Thakur said and assailed the BJP government for failing to initiate any austerity measure to cut wasteful expenditures.
The HP Congress president said in the proposed budget for next financial year, 23 per cent would come by way of borrowing to fund the Rs 3,000 crore annual budget.
Out of every Rs 100 spend, Rs 15 is interest on loans and Rs 8 on repayments, he said.
Strongly contesting the figures, chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said borrowings during previous Congress rule
were much higher.
Continuing with his attack, the HPPCC president charged the BJP government with failing to properly put its case before the 13th finance commission which has recommended only 50% raise in its outlays while in other states the recommendation was above 100%.
Thakur criticised the BJP government for providing 96 bighas of prime land to yoga guru Swami Ramdev in Solan on 99 years lease at very subsidised rate to open branch of his Patanjali yogapeeth in the state and questioned motive of the state health minister Rajiv Bindal behind this.
Bindal strongly countered the allegation and demanded an apology for disrespect shown to Ramdev.
He also castigated the BJP government for proposing to raise VAT on items used by common man and also recent increase in bus fares by 30% which he said would make life of masses miserable.
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