BJP demands 'whitepaper' on economic condition

Kozhikode, Apr 16 (UNI) Stating that Kerala is in a debt trap with a whopping Rs 47,793 crore as loan liabilities, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today demanded a whitepaper prior to the April/May assembly poll on the ''deteriorating'' economic condition of the state.

People would like to know about the expenditure incurred by the Congress-led UDF government, which had enhanced the state's liabilities to an all time high of Rs 47,793 crore, BJP state President P S Sreedharan Pillai said at a meet-the-press programme here.

This was the figure as per the 2006-07 Budget estimates, the actual debt would be much higher, he said.

The BJP leader said the UDF, which had promised to meet the expenditure through tax collection in its election manifesto, had betrayed the people by further accumulating the debt from various agencies, including the Asian Development Bank and World Bank.

Despite utilizing huge external and internal loan, no adequate allocation had been made for small scale and agricultural sector, which faced hardship compelling peasants to commit suicide, he said.

He said the state had registered only a 5.7 growth percentage against the government's claim of 9.2 per cent, above the national average.

Mr Pillai said Chief Minister Oommen Chandy should come out with an apology for giving false information about the economic condition of the state.

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