Thiruvananthapuram: The central government had never took any discriminatory action against Kerala, said the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday. She was inaugurating the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra, the Union government’s mega outreach exercise to ensure that its initiatives reached all the beneficiaries, here at Mangalapuram panchayat.

According to her, the CAG ( Comptroller and Auditor General of India) was only criticising Kerala on notice of some non-transparent financial matters done by the Kerala government.

The minister said that the Union government is bound to initiate certain steps when the governance of a state is found non-transparent. Once the Centre became forced to take such steps, the state need not cry foul, saying the move was against federalism, she added.

It is natural for the CAG, the supreme audit institution of India, to criticise initiatives that are not transparent, said the Union minister. Subsequently, the central government will act. This is the government's approach to all states, she said while ruling out the argument on the Central government's discrimination against Kerala.

The minister was referring to the CAG report that said the borrowings by KIIFB (Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board), a body to mobilize funds for infrastructure development from outside the state revenue, had bypassed the set limits. Consequently, after the report, the centre made a drastic reduction in Kerala's borrowing limit.

Sitharaman further said that the Centre has been providing the states' shares without fail, and often make advance payments. Vikasit Bharat Sankalp Yatra is meant for all people and the Union government has been successful in identifying those in need and providing them with financial assistance, she said.

According to the finance minister, there are no traces of corruption charges against the Prime Minister or the Cabinet Ministers over the past decade. She claimed that the country's economy witnessed a rise despite the limiting conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, fuel price hikes, and the war.
Sitharaman also distributed cheques and gas stoves for Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries, at the event organised by the SBI Kerala Circle.

Sitharaman stuck in a traffic block for 20 minutes

While returning to the airport after the official function, the Union minister got a taste of Thiruvananthapuram's traffic woes.
Her convoy was caught in a traffic block at the capital for about 20 minutes near Karikkakom on the bypass. Though the police usually block vehicular movement to ensure smooth passage to the Chief Minister's motorcade, it was not arranged when Sitharaman returned to the airport, though she had pilot and escort vehicles.