Admn heading to financial crisis: M Ramadoss

Puducherry, Oct 3 (UNI) PMK Parliamentary party leader M Ramadoss today alleged that the Union Territory is heading for a financial crisis.

Addressing a press conference today, Prof Ramadoss said while the revenue receipt had come down, the luxury expediture was on the increase. The loan from the Centre, as per the Budget estimation for 2007-08, had raised to Rs 787 crore, he added.

During the current year the territorial administration had payed Rs 203 crore as interest itself, which was about 50 per cent of the revenue receipt from Sales Tax, he said.

Referring to 'India Today' magazine adjudging Puducherry as the best among small states, Prof Ramadoss said that the award was conferred on the basis of some external factors pertaining to the per capita income. The factors such as unemployment, regional imbalances and equal distribution of resources needed to be considered while conducting survey, he said, adding that about 1.34 lakh BPL families were holding red colour ration cards in Puducherry.

He stated that human development index should also be considered, and claimed that only 40 per cent of the population in Puducherry region had enrolled in the employment exchange.

Stating that all the five textile mills in the Union Territory were sinking, Prof Ramadoss demanded that all the mills be brought under one institution and a textile expert be appointed as the Director.

He demanded that the problems faced by the tsunami affected fishermen should be solved soon.

The PG centre for Pondicherry Central University would start in Karaikal region on October 10 and the work for the Karaikal-Nagore broadgauge railway line was expected to commence next month, at a cost of Rs 58 crore, he added.

The 25 medical seats enhanced at the JIPMER would not be implemented this year as the Medical Council of India had instructed them to admit OBC students in these seats from next year, he said.

He added that the PMK had been urging the administration to set up a coordination committee of the alliance partners to discuss and sort out the problems in a democratic way.

UNI