MPLADS fund of Rs 21.59 crore unused in Assam
Guwahati: Of the amount released under the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) fund allotted to 14 MPs of Assam, the unspent balance of Rs 21.5877 crore is lying unspent, and Rs 105 crore is still outstanding. Will be issued by the Government of India by November 1, 2023.
This figure has come out in a report of the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation of the Government of India.
It was also revealed that 14 MPs were entitled to a total of Rs 250.50 crore under the MPLAD scheme. Out of this, Rs 144.50 crore was released by the Government of India.
As per the standard, the funds released for MPs are deposited in the bank account of the respective district administration, and interest is charged on the amount thus deposited. By adding this interest, the total amount available in banks becomes Rs 148.5568 crore.
Out of the total available amount, an amount of Rs 134.9756 was sanctioned for implementation of schemes under MPLADS. Out of this sanctioned amount, a total of Rs 21.5877 crore has not been spent.
The report also mentions the performance of 14 MPs from the state in utilizing their share of MPLAD funds.
According to the report, the highest percentage of the amount was utilized by Silchar MP Rajdeep Roy with 98.97% spent. On the other hand, the MP who spent the least amount is Dhubri MP Badruddin Ajmal, who spent 68.20%.
The percentage of utilization of the funds released as well as the performance of other MPs were also highlighted.
Thus, Guwahati MP Rani Oja utilized 69.39% of the sanctioned amount. Similarly, Jorhat MP Topon Kumar Gogoi spent 87.40% of his funds. Dibrugarh MP Rameshwar Teli could spend 85.99% of his funds, while Karimganj MP Kripanath Mallah spent 90.42%. Tezpur MP Pallab Lochan Das spent 68.88%, while Lakhimpur MP Pradan Barua managed to spend 94.84%. Kaliabor MP Gaurav Gogoi spent 91.32% of his funds, while Autonomous District MP Horen Sing Bey spent 95.59%. Barpeta MP Abdul Khaliq spent 85.09%, while Kokrajhar MP Naba Kumar Saraniya spent 94.64%. Mangaldoi MP Dilip Saikia spent 82.57% of his funds, while Nagaon MP Pradyut Bordoloi spent 87.41% of his sanctioned amount.
As per the guidelines, the role of the MP is usually to recommend the implementation of a scheme or action. It is the concerned district administration which implements the scheme or gets the work completed. A construction committee has been formed for this. Government representatives are also included in the committee. Therefore, the moral responsibility of completing any work or implementing any plan rests with an MP. Therefore, the responsibility for non-implementation cannot be fixed on the MP. The district administration is held responsible for any lapse.
