Staff Reporter
SHILLONG:
The state government has requested the Centre to continue with the Border Area Development Programme (BADP) for the benefit of the people living in the border areas and that funds be released for the projects submitted during 2021-22.
This was informed by Minister-in-charge of Border Area Development, Lahkmen Rymbui while replying to a zero hour notice of Mawsynram legislator Himalaya M Shangpliang in the assembly on September 13.
The state government’s request made on August 2 was in response to the Ministry of Home Affairs’ letter dated April 6, 2022 instructing that BADP may be continued up to September 30, 2022.
No new works will be approved under BADP and annual action plan for 2022-23 should not be sent to the ministry, the letter said while requesting the state governments to prioritise sanction works, continue only ongoing works and those not started should not be implemented.
The minister also informed that he had met the minister concerned in Delhi and joint secretary to BADP in this regard.
The minister said that during 2020-21, the Centre had approved 139 projects amounting to Rs 15.66 crore, but no fund was released during this financial year. The matter was taken up with the ministry which cited Covid-19 pandemic as the reason.
He added that during 2019-20, an amount of Rs 5066.883 lakh was sanctioned and 100 per cent utilisation certificate was submitted to the ministry during December, 2021.
Moreover, 14 projects amounting to Rs 375.9795 lakh, which were approved by the ministry during 2019-20, were sanctioned during 2021-22 from the state fund and the amount has been fully utilised for the purpose for which it was sanctioned.
During the year 2021-22, the Department of Border Management under the MHA in a letter dated March 3, 2022 released an amount of Rs 650 lakh as first tranche, which has been utilised for implementation of 99 projects out of the 139 approved tor the year 2020-21 and 100 per cent UC has been submitted to the ministry.
The remaining fund for completion of ongoing projects as projected by the state amounting to Rs 741.83 lakh (central share) due from the ministry is yet to be released in view of some technical problems in the Public Financial Management System.
Rymbui further said that 169 projects amounting to Rs 2229.10 lakh as per the ministry’s allocation for the year 2021-22 have been approved by the state level screening committee and the same has been sent to the ministry, but the fund was yet to be released.
Earlier, raising the zero hour notice, Shangpliang said, “For the last two years, we have not received any further funds for the year 2021-2022 and 2022-23. For Mawsynram block it amounts to Rs 2.12 crores for 2021-22 and Rs 2.28 crores for 2022-23. These schemes have already been approved by the state level committee.”
He added that he wants to know from the minister-in-charge border areas the reasons for not receiving the funds for the last two years and the action taken to ensure the early release of the funds.
He said that the non receipt of such funds has hampered the development in border areas.
Shangpliang has requested the minister to take up the matter with Delhi to ensure that pending funds for the last two years be released before the term ends.