KOLKATA: The central government has allegedly withheld Rs 7000 crore allocated to the West Bengal government as flex boards featuring pictures of Narendra Modi were not displayed at ration shops in the state.

Although the Centre had repeatedly directed the state government to display the flexboards and sign boards featuring the Prime Minister's picture and the logo of the National Food Security Act at ration shops across the state, the state government did not comply with this. Last year, the state government had procured paddy worth Rs 7000 crores from the farmers for various schemes of the Centre. According to the state government officials, the Centre's refusal to release the amount will seriously affect the state's paddy procurement in the current financial year.

The West Bengal government has already procured 8.52 lakh tonnes for the NFSA schemes in this financial year for the central pool. It has procured 22 lakh tonnes of paddy, including the volume for the central pool, against its annual target of 70 lakh tonnes this year. The state government says that the withholding of the funds will affect the paddy procurement in the kharif season.

The state aims to procure 80 percent of the annual target of 70 lakh tonnes during the kharif season. This season's procurement will continue till the end of February. The state government has also issued a warning that paddy procurement will be adversely affected if it does not receive funds on time during this period.