Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made a significant announcement, stating that her government will disburse pending wages to 21 lakh MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) workers by February 21. These dues, pending for the past two years and withheld by the Central government, will be directly transferred to the workers' bank accounts.

The announcement follows Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's two-day protest, initiated to demand the release of central dues owed to the West Bengal government for various welfare schemes. In conjunction with the protest, she penned a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, challenging the Comptroller and Auditor General's report on the delay in submitting Utilisation Certificates.

In the letter, Banerjee labeled the report as "erroneous," asserting that it could create a "misleading picture" and was being exploited by certain individuals for "false propaganda against the state administrative machinery." She highlighted that the CAG's State Finance Audit Report for 2020-21 suggested a delay in submitting Utilisation Certificates amounting to Rs 2,29,099 crore from 2002-03 to 2020-21.

Contrary to the report, Banerjee clarified that the West Bengal government had submitted Utilisation Certificates to the respective union ministries promptly. The Chief Minister aims to counter any negative perceptions created by the CAG report and uphold the efficiency of the state's administrative processes.

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