Isaac’s poser to Mani on plan outlay

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Former Finance Minister T M Thomas Isaac wants to know how Finance Minister K M Mani plans to raise the plan outlay by Rs 980 crore, from Rs 11,030 crore to Rs 12,010 crore, when the Finance Minister had already stated in his White Paper that the state was burdened with a committed expenditure of over Rs 5,000 crore. “If we are so cash-strapped as the Finance Minister claims, from where will he mobilise the additional resources?” Isaac asked during a press conference here on Thursday.

Isaac said it was not in the language of the White Paper that K M Mani talked to the Centre. “As per the press release issued by the Press Information Bureau, the fiscal deficit in 2010-11 was just 2.91 percent when the permitted ceiling was higher at 3.5 percent. As for the revenue deficit, it was just 1.9 percent. If this is the case, then where is the crisis that Mani had been talking ad nauseam right from the time he took over?’’ Isaac asked.

The former minister said that Rs 100 crore of the Rs 326 crore one-time Central assistance had already been included in the draft plan outlay of Rs 11,030 crore. ‘’This means, Rs 226 crore is the additional amount received from the Centre. From where is the government expecting the remaining Rs 750-plus crore?’’ The annual plan outlay for the state for 2011-12 has been pegged at Rs 11,030 crore when the LDF was in power.

“Mani should either admit that all that was written in the White Paper was wrong or he should concede that he had inherited a comfortable cushion for managing the state’s finances,’’ Isaac said. The Former Finance Minister, even while welcoming the increase in plan outlay, said that the Centre had cold-shouldered the state during LDF rule.

‘’Whenever the LDF was in power the Centre had the tendency to impose stringent conditions for cash transfers. When the UDF is in power such conditions simply vanish. This is discriminatory and mocks at the federal structure,’’ Isaac said.

Isaac also said that the CPM would oppose any move to raise the retirement age to 56. He also wanted the State Government to conduct an open discussion before going ahead with the pension reforms and industrial policy reforms mooted by the Planning Commission.