Kerala gets only 25 paisa for each rupee it earns for Centre: Why are BJP rulers "playing politics" over funds?

By Sheshu Babu*
Floods are a common occurrence in India, as imbalance in climate every year causes lot of variation in rainfall geographically. But the floods in Kerala have not only caused havoc on unprecedented scale, but also politics has taken the upper hand over humanitarian aid to the victims.
While the state needs more than Rs 2,000 crore for relief and rehabilitation, the Centre is neither providing necessary assistance, nor allowing other nations and foreign non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to help the state. This is not only petty party politics but also reflection of traditional aversion towards south.
Addressing a press conference, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee Treasurer (TNCC) Gudur Narayana Reddy said, “...It took more than 10 days for the Centre to declare the Kerala floods as 'severe calamity'. Compared to this, the Centre was quick in declaring ‘natural calamity’ for floods in Uttarakhand...' He added, the Prime Minster should treat all states equally and act above party lines.
The BJP has very little political representation in south India except in some parts of Karnataka, Telengana and Andhra Pradesh. Hence it is not bothering about the devastating floods in Kerala.
Even Rahul Gandhi said that the PM should stop discriminating between BJP ruled states and non- BJP ruled states. He also advised Congress governments in states to come forward and help the people of Kerala in this hour of tragedy. All Congress MPs, MLAs, MLCs should donate one month salary, he said.
The BJP indifferent attitude is deplorable.
CPM leader P Karunakaran said in the Lok Sabha that this is one of the worst floods in the history of Kerala. He expressed displeasure that the Centre has not given the due after devastating cyclone Okhi.
South India has been discriminated against in many ways. Though it has about 20% of India's population, it contributes about 30% of total taxes. Analysing the discriminatory attitude, Vinod Dua explained in Jan Gan Man Ki Baat , Episode 292 (August 22), that South India's share in total GDP is 25% but it gets only 18% in return.
For example, Tamil Nadu contributes one rupee, but it gets only forty paisa, whereas Uttar Pradesh gets one rupee and 80 paisa for every rupee.
Kerala gets only 25 paisa for every rupee it earns for Delhi.
The present finance commission allocates grants according to 2011 census. As South India controlled its population compared to north, much of the money earned by south is consumed by North India.
But, when it comes to assisting coastal states of South India, discrimination prevails. Kerala contributes sizeable amount to GDP, but when the hour of tragedy in the form of severe cyclone or flood comes, the Centre is very late to respond.
With close to 400 or above deaths and lakh of people displaced, wavering on the question of accepting aid from other nations is regrettable. The aid given by the Centre is insufficient, and if it is not able to compensate fully, it should allow other alternatives to assist flood victims so that they receive relief materials without any obstacles quickly.
Citing reasons for non-acceptance of aid as 'below dignity' may be a ridiculous response to natural disaster of mammoth proportions.
---
*Writer from anywhere and everywhere supports equality of all people

Comments

Gujarat Information Commission issues warning against misinterpretation of RTI orders

By A Representative The Gujarat Information Commission (GIC) has issued a press note clarifying that its orders limiting the number of Right to Information (RTI) applications for certain individuals apply only to those specific applicants. The GIC has warned that it will take disciplinary action against any public officials who misinterpret these orders to deny information to other citizens. The press note, signed by GIC Secretary Jaideep Dwivedi, states that the Right to Information Act, 2005, is a powerful tool for promoting transparency and accountability in public administration. However, the commission has observed that some applicants are misusing the act by filing an excessive number of applications, which disproportionately consumes the time and resources of Public Information Officers (PIOs), First Appellate Authorities (FAAs), and the commission itself. This misuse can cause delays for genuine applicants seeking justice. In response to this issue, and in acc...

'MGNREGA crisis deepening': NSM demands fair wages and end to digital exclusions

By A Representative The NREGA Sangharsh Morcha (NSM), a coalition of independent unions of MGNREGA workers, has warned that the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is facing a “severe crisis” due to persistent neglect and restrictive measures imposed by the Union Government.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Gandhiji quoted as saying his anti-untouchability view has little space for inter-dining with "lower" castes

By A Representative A senior activist close to Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patkar has defended top Booker prize winning novelist Arundhati Roy’s controversial utterance on Gandhiji that “his doctrine of nonviolence was based on an acceptance of the most brutal social hierarchy the world has ever known, the caste system.” Surprised at the police seeking video footage and transcript of Roy’s Mahatma Ayyankali memorial lecture at the Kerala University on July 17, Nandini K Oza in a recent blog quotes from available sources to “prove” that Gandhiji indeed believed in “removal of untouchability within the caste system.”

Targeted eviction of Bengali-speaking Muslims across Assam districts alleged

By A Representative A delegation led by prominent academic and civil rights leader Sandeep Pandey visited three districts in Assam—Goalpara, Dhubri, and Lakhimpur—between 2 and 4 September 2025 to meet families affected by recent demolitions and evictions. The delegation reported widespread displacement of Bengali-speaking Muslim communities, many of whom possess valid citizenship documents including Aadhaar, voter ID, ration cards, PAN cards, and NRC certification.

Subject to geological upheaval, the time to listen to the Himalayas has already passed

By Rajkumar Sinha* The people of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, who have somehow survived the onslaught of reckless development so far, are crying out in despair that within the next ten to fifteen years their very existence will vanish. If one carefully follows the news coming from these two Himalayan states these days, this painful cry does not appear exaggerated. How did these prosperous and peaceful states reach such a tragic condition? What feats of our policymakers and politicians pushed these states to the brink of destruction?

India's health workers have no legal right for their protection, regrets NGO network

Counterview Desk In a letter to Union labour and employment minister Santosh Gangwar, the civil rights group Occupational and Environmental Health Network of India (OEHNI), writing against the backdrop of strike by Bhabha hospital heath care workers, has insisted that they should be given “clear legal right for their protection”.

Rally in Patna: Non-farmer bodies to highlight plight of agriculture in Eastern India ahead of march to Parliament

P Sainath By A Representative Ahead of the march to Parliament on November 29-30, 2018, organized by over 210 farmer and agricultural worker organisations of the country demanding a 21-day special session of Parliament to deliberate on remedial measures for safeguarding the interest of farm, farmers and agricultural workers, a mass rally been organized for November 23, Gandhi Sangrahalaya (Gandhi Museum), Gandhi Maidan, Patna. Say the organizers, the Eastern region merits special attention, because, while crisis of farmers and agricultural workers in Western, Southern and Northern India has received some attention in the media and central legislature, the plight of those in the Eastern region of the country (Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Eastern UP) has remained on the margins. To be addressed by P Sainath, founder of People’s Archive of Rural India (PARI), a statement issued ahead of the rally says, the Eastern India was the most prosperous regi...

'Centre criminally negligent': SKM demands national disaster declaration in flood-hit states

By A Representative The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) has urged the Centre to immediately declare the recent floods and landslides in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and Haryana as a national disaster, warning that the delay in doing so has deepened the suffering of the affected population.

Counterview

Search This Blog