By IANS,
Lucknow : Uttar Pradesh Public Works Minister Naseemuddin Siddiqui Thursday pointedly blamed the central government for the poor condition of several highways and major roads in the state.
The state government has gone to the extent of putting up boards, which clearly declare that the centre is to be blamed for the poor condition of roads.
Replying to questions at a press conference here, Siddiqui said, “I am aware that the condition of the national highways in the state was very bad, but there is very little that we can do about it as these highways are maintained solely with the funds released by the union government, that has not cared to give us any money.”
He said, “we have put up boards at certain places so that people can understand why the condition of the roads was bad.”
He claimed, “As far as the state highways and district roads were concerned we were maintaining them very well, but in the absence of funding from the centre, the national highways were bound to get neglected.”
Siddiqui went on to accuse the Congress-led UPA government of withholding grants meant to be released out of the Prime Minister’s Gramin Sarak Yojana (PMGSY). “For two years, we have not received a single penny for the upkeep of rural roads under the PMGSY scheme, with the result that many of the rural roads too were in bad shape,” he said.