Other states competing to adopt Karnataka’s guarantees, claims Karnataka Governor
Thaawarchand Gehlot said on Monday.
“It is a global record that more than 5 crore people of the State will be promoted to middle class status by this one decision of my government,” the governor told the joint session of the state’s legislature.
He was referring to the five campaign pledges the Congress made ahead of the May 2023 assembly polls, which helped the party unseat the BJP regime.
Gehlot, reading out the speech cleared by the Cabinet, said the government was ready to implement more pro-people schemes, but not enough resources were available from various sources. “Karnataka ranks second among the states that collect the highest tax in the country. But it is ranked tenth in terms of receipt of tax share. My government is putting every effort to get our due share in a rightful and justifiable manner.”
The comments come on the heels of Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks that the Centre could not help the states that drain their coffers after making unrealistic election promises.
The governor, however, countered the perception by insisting that there had been a robust growth in the state’s revenue collection. “We are second in the country in GST collections. The budget has provided for the implementation of guarantees. The studies commissioned by the Finance Department show positive impact and response from people about these schemes.”
The government's five guarantee schemes, Gehlot added, had provided solace to people suffering from growing economic inequality. He cited the overwhelming response from
