AGARTALA, October 8 (TIWN): Notwithstanding the facts and figures put forward, number of times, by the opposition and employee association leaders like PDS’s Ajoy Biswas and such others, both Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and the then Finance Minister Badal Choudhury on behalf of the state government used to make the people of the state bewildered by uttering the stories of number game and exercising the weapons of various technical jargons of Central grant, 13TH Finance Commission’s deprivation and Planning Commission’s fund allocation to Tripura. But on the contrary, the ground reality is showing a scene of something else.Based on a Year on Year (YoY) basis, during the 2010-2015 operational period of 13th Finance Commission (FC), a constant rise in the Plant Grant has been observed for the state of Tripura.

  A staggering rise of 800 % has been made over a period of four years (2010 to 2014) under the Plan Grant which includes elementary education, protection of forests, district innovation funds, incentive for issuing UIDs and state specific needs. Rs. 155.16 crore has been granted as per the Plan Grant in the Financial Year (FY) 2013-14. The same amount was made available for the last FY 2012-13 while Rs. 144.22 crore was allotted for the FY 2011-12. When it comes to Non-Plan Grant (NPG), the FC did not shrink its fund release that much and maintained a moderate level. NPG of Rs.1164.86 crore in FY 2012-13 has seen a downfall in the FY 2013-14 at Rs. 987.42 crore. Now why the FC has adopted such an approach is attributed to a considerable decline in the Non Plan Revenue Deficit Grant (From Rs.1030 crore to Rs.835 crore).

The Planning Commission (PC) of India has adopted a rational take on Tripura during the two successive plan periods.  According to the Financial Resource (FR) division of PC (Complying with the 11^th plan period of 2007 to 2012 and 12^th plan period of 2012-2017), an upward trend was sustained drom a period of FY 2007-2008 to 2011-2012.The Approved amount as per Plan Outlay of Planning Commission in the last plan period had seen a Year on Year (YoY) rise from Rs.1220 crore in 2007-2008 to 1950 crore in 2011-2012. And in the first year of the current 12^th Five Year plan an amount of RS. 2220 crore was approved. Though if 2010-11 is set aside, the Actual amount released was less than the approved amount. To add to that, if the achievement of Plan Outlay is looked at, Tripura has registered a achievement percentage of more than 85, in all the years. The state, further had achieved a praiseworthy 100% in the FY 2010-11.

Meanwhile, the desired Plan size of the State for 2013-14 is Rs. 2850 crore as per State’s Annual Plan Document 2013-14 against the approved Plan Outlay of Rs. 2250 crore in 2012-13(Approved Plan). The Plan resources for 2013-14 for Tripura has been worked out including 13th Finance Commission Grants, Share of Central Taxes as per Union Budget, Normal Central Assistance as per Gadgil –Mukherjee Formula, Scheme wise ACAs have been included based on budgetary allocation, information from concerned Ministries/Subject Divisions and Budgetary borrowing as per Ministry of Finance (MoF) Ceiling. The allocation of Central assistance under North Eastern Council (NEC) and Non Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) has also been included in the total resources for State Plan for 2013-14. 

Tripura being a special category state gets preferential treatment in federal assistance and tax breaks. All the special category states of India are given a higher share of the Union government's resource allocation because of harsh terrain, backwardness and other social problems. All of them also happen to be border state and thus accordingly get separate treatment for the overall socio-economic welfare of the state’s people. Now amidst all these undeniable issues, if the state authorities tell ‘we are deprived by Finance Commission’ and “Centre is behaving as a stepmother to Tripura”, it invokes nothing but political polarization.