Says, both state, centre failed flood hit people of Punjab
Seeks GOI intervention on stranded Indians in Russia
Punjab Newsline, Chandigarh-
Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring today demanded that the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab must clarify its position about the Rs 12500 crore disaster relief fund believed to be lying with it.
IN an informal interaction with reporters on the occasion of the special Vidhan Sabha session, Warring said the state government had not come out with a clear and categorical answer so far after the Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed that Rs 12500 crores was lying with the state.
He said, so far, the response of the government was quite confusing. “It was neither clear nor confident to confirm or deny the Prime Minister’s claims”, he said, while hoping that by now it must have got some clarity on the matter after making relevant inquiries.
The PCC president also wanted to know how much amount had been provided by the centre so far after the Prime Minister announced a Rs 1600 crore package. Although that amount is too inconsequential for such devastation, still we want to know whether the centre has made any payment till now, he added.
Warring questioned the AAP government’s failure to provide immediate relief to the flood hit people. “What we have heard so far, is the announcement after announcement and nothing on the ground”, he remarked.
Replying to a question on the state government having set up a special ‘Rangla Punjab’ fund for flood relief, he said, it was people’s money, which had been taken from the public for flood relief and it must be collected and distributed in a transparent manner.
At a separate press conference at the PCC headquarters, Warring reiterated his demand that the external affairs ministry must take up the matter of the stranded youth who are stuck in Russia-Ukraine war with the Russian government. He said, till now, there has been no positive response from the government. He disclosed that when Jagdeep Singh, the brother of a stranded youth visited Russia on his own, there was no support or cooperation from the Indian embassy in Moscow.
He provided a cheque of Rs one lakh to Jagdeep for his another journey to Russia to locate his brother there. He appealed to the government of India to take up the matter with the Russian government on an urgent basis, as it was literally a matter of life and death for the stranded youth, who were from different parts of the country.