Defending the surrender of such huge sums, the minister for minority affairs Salman Khurshid told DNA that a host of factors were responsible for the underutilisation.
Even as the central government recently increased allocations for the ministry of minority affairs, in the general budget, by over 14%, statistics show that the ministry surrendered funds to the tune of Rs587.70 crore during 2010-11. Finance minister Pranabh Mukherjee has set aside Rs3,135 crore against the previous year’s allocation of Rs2,750 crore, an increase of Rs385 crore.
Defending the surrender of such huge sums, the minister for minority affairs Salman Khurshid told DNA that a host of factors were responsible for the underutilisation. “It is not about the efficiency of my ministry, but factors like timely utilisation certificates of state governments and channelising agencies responsible for underutilization,” he said. Khurshid clarified that his ministry’s role was limited to monitoring schemes and had no role in their execution, barring a few.
A parliamentary committee under BSP leader Dara Singh Chauhan stated that funds to the tune of Rs462.26 crore, that remained unused, were meant for the prime minister’s pet scheme of multi-sectorial development programme for minority concentration districts. Further, an amount of Rs33.5crore allocated for pre-matric scholarship, Rs9.38 crore for computerisation of records of state boards, Rs26.3272 for merit-cum-means scholarship scheme and Rs24.152 crore on post-matric scholarship schemes were also sent back.
The panel recommended the ministry to review the status of fund utilisation by states at regular intervals, persuade the slow performing states to utilise funds, guide and urge them to send the proposals well on time. The committee had further expressed dismay at the 32 vacant posts in the ministry, including important posts in Urdu.
The committee further said, “The monitoring and review of PM’s new 15-point programme has not been regular as the committees which are supposed to meet at regular intervals are not meeting for the purpose. Even when the meetings are held occasionally, the members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, who are members of the review committee, are not being informed.”
Pranab Mukherjee recently allocated Rs4.50 crore for a new scheme to provide free cycles to girl students of class IX with the objective of retention of minority girl students from class IX onwards.
The money for pre-matric scholarship has been increased from Rs540 crore to Rs810 crore; post-matric scholarship gets Rs450 crore - up from Rs405 crore; merit-cum-means scholarship scheme gets Rs198 crore - as against Rs126 crore during 2011-12. Provision for Maulana Azad national fellowship for minority students has been enhanced from Rs47 crore to Rs63 crore.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}