Days after Haseeb Drabu said that Jammu and Kashmir will no longer go to Delhi with a "begging bowl", Congress today took a jibe at the Finance Minister saying the "bowl has come crashing so soon" while referring to Chief Minister Mufti Mohmmad Sayeed's demand of continuation of 90:10 grant-loan ratio at NITI AYOG.
Mufti yesterday sought continuation of existing funding pattern for special category states, saying any change in 90:10 grant-loan ratio for Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) will have serious implications for the state.
"It is easy to talk of fiscal autonomy, economic independence, quite another to walk that talk. All the talk about no longer going to Delhi with begging bowl has come crashing so soon (over the issue of 90:10 funding pattern of special category states)," Congress Legislative Party (CLP) leader Nawang Rizgin Jora told reporters here today.
Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed yesterday stated that dispensing with the 90:10 funding pattern for Centrally-Sponsored Schemes (CSSs) for Special Category states will have serious implications for JK which he said is strategically located and has seen a difficult period since 1947.
Mufti said that JK and the North East states, which have huge locational disadvantages coupled with challenging security scenario, will be severely handicapped if the 90:10 funding pattern is done away with.
"We have seen a turnaround for the better in these states now. The recommendations to change funding pattern and de-link some Centrally-sponsored schemes from Union support will seriously hamper the implementation of these schemes in a state like ours," said the Chief Minister.
