Members of Parliament (MP) Adoor Prakash, Hibi Eden, Chandra Sekhar Sahu on September 16 raised questions about the alleged dissolution or withholding of the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) funds during the coronavirus pandemic in the country.
Minister of State the Ministry Of Statistics And Programme Implementation (MoSPI) and the Ministry of Planning, Rao Inderjit Singh said that the Government had not dissolved the MPLADS funds but suspended operations under the scheme for the next two financial years. The Centre gave the funds for FY 2020-21 to the Ministry of Finance to strengthen efforts in addressing Covid-19 related challenges, a notified disaster in the country.
When asked about the response from other MPs regarding this decision, he said that Centre received their references requesting for release of pending installments due from March 31. The dues would be needed to resume ongoing works and clear the committed liabilities under MPLADS.
In reply, the Government has issued detailed instructions on April 8 that requested MPs to possibly change the priority of their earlier recommendations, so that the recommended work can be completed within the funds already available to the district authority. The Minister reiterated that no more funds will be released during FY 2020-21 and 2021-22.
He added that the Ministry issued another circular on May 14 to the nodal district authorities for settlement and closure of savings bank accounts of former MPs of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The unspent balance from these accounts that have remained open even after the completion of 21 months from resignation can be used by the States that require funds as per MPLADS guidelines.
The Minister of State said that the government had received references from concerned Ministers that said the Centre’s decision would impact developmental activities. However, the Government has not conducted any survey to find the extent of the impact on developmental activities and job opportunities in various districts in the country.
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