‘Raje govt delayed Jaipur Metro project to negate our achievement’

After I took over as chief minister in 2008, E Sreedharan had once visited Kota for some event. There he had told the media that Jaipur must get a Metro of its own. It was a small news item in a prominent Hindi daily and I took note of it. I sent my secretary to New Delhi to meet him and discuss the feasibility of the project. Sreedharan’s credentials as the ‘Metro Man’ are above board and he had strongly pushed for the project. We then went ahead with it, signed the MoU in 2010 and Jaipur Metro emerged as one of the fastest Metro projects to be implemented across the world. We roped in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation because the body already had the expertise to implement the project and was a government undertaking.

During our regime we had almost finished Phase I B (Mansarovar to Chandpole-elevated) and also awarded work for Phase I B (Chandpole to Badi Chaupar). The second and more important 23-km corridor from Sitapura Industrial Area to Ambabari was planned as Phase II and if implemented would have created a robust mass rapid transit network in the city. But the BJP government is purposely delaying the project and trying to negate our achievement. At a time when the NDA government at the Centre is approving funds for Metro rail projects in Lucknow and Ahmedabad, Raje is questioning the Jaipur Metro rail. The NDA government itself has made a case for cities with population above 20 lakh to be eligible for Metro rail. Jaipur had crossed the 30 lakh mark in 2011 itself.

Your government is accused of not bargaining well for the state in the Barmer oil refinery project.

We will be more than happy if Raje manages to strike a better deal with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd and get a higher stake for the state. The deal was approved by the UPA government at the Centre following a Cabinet decision. In matters of oil and gas, state government’s have a limited role. The state has a claim only on the royalty and VAT. However, Raje has unconstitutionally been claiming that ‘it is our land, our oil, our water, yet the state has a poor stake in the project’. Let me remind her, the Centre has full right over oil and gas and not the state. HPCL is a government undertaking and therefore there can hardly be any question of a less profitable deal.
Her allegations that we will be giving an interest-free loan of Rs 56,000 crore without any gains is a half-truth. She does not mention that this investment is being done through Rajasthan Refinery Ltd, a joint venture of the state and from the 16th year the state will get the amount back in 15 years.

Your financial management has been severely criticised. The free medicine scheme too has been called a burden.

Let us get the facts clear. We increased the budget from Rs 15,000 crore in 2008-09 to Rs 40,500 crore in 2013-14. We presented a revenue surplus for three consecutive years and when the CAG report is tabled next time everyone will see that we had left the coffers with revenue surplus yet again, as against the claims made by the current CM. Our fiscal deficit and loans were well within the limit. The Reserve Bank of India, the Planning Commission, the Finance Commission and even former PM Manmohan Singh have all lauded Rajasthan’s finance management during my previous government.

The free medicine and test scheme was such a hit that even the NDA government now wants to replicate it across the country but the home state where the scheme was born sees no additional allocation for the project. Instead the CM criticised it during her budget presentation. It is unfortunate.

How do you rate the Raje government’s first budget?

It has nothing new to offer. This is the first budget where the ruling government has taken credit for ongoing projects introduced during the previous Congress regime. The CM has made tall claims on providing and generating more power. The foundation stone for the Suratgarh and Chhabra critical power plants were already laid by the UPA government and they were in operation. We started the massive solar park in Phalodi, had been generating 2500 MW of wind power and made good progress in thermal power too. The super speciality hospitals mentioned in the budget were already introduced by us.

The BJP has levelled allegations of corruption against Robert Vadra, your son Vaibhav and you and also threatened to order probe

The BJP government has only been levelling allegations and threatening to order a probe but is yet to take any action. Why is that so? If Robert Vadra had any illegal land dealings, why is the BJP government sitting on it and not taking any proactive action. I have said earlier also and yet again throw an open challenge to Raje to order an investigation against Vadra, my son and her son Dushyant Singh. Let a sitting High Court judge investigate all their dealings and transactions. I can assure you this will never be done for they have a lot to hide.