The Hindu 01.02.2010
Local bodies utilise only 32% of funds
N.J. Nair
| Bureaucratic apathy cited as reason |
Corporations recorded lowest absorption rate
Shortage of technical staff hampered projects
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The average fund absorption rate of local self-government institutions in the State for the financial year 2009-10 has been pegged at 31.89 per cent.
According to the annual expenditure review, the civic bodies could spent only Rs.665.15 crore out of the Rs.2,085.13 crore provided to them till December 31, 2009. Corporations recorded the lowest absorption rate. They could make use of only Rs.23.05 crore of the total allocation of Rs.144.17 crore.
The 53 municipalities expended only Rs.46.48 crore of the Rs.177.07 crore left at their disposal. Out of the annual allocation of Rs.277.33 crore, the14 district panchayats utilised Rs.96.81 crore. The 152 block panchayats spent only Rs.111.75 crore of the Rs.272.64 crore allocated during the period and the grama panchayats only Rs.387.06 crore of the assigned funds of Rs.1,213 crore.
As per the quarterly target set by the State government, the civic bodies should spend 10 per cent funds by June 30, and 40 per cent by September 30 so that the expenditure would be 70 per cent by December 31 and 100 per cent by March 31. Going by this target, there was already a shortfall of about 60 per cent in the expenditure rate.
Though bureaucratic apathy had been cited as one of the reasons for the poor disbursement, paucity of engineering staff in the civic bodies was also understood to have upset the plans for completing a number of projects within the stipulated time. Following the devolution of funds and powers, civic bodies had to simultaneously execute a number of civil works every year. Paucity of technical staff often delayed the formalities for making the payment of the completed works. This had reflected in the payment registers too.
Stringent guidelines laid by the government to weed out corruption in fund utilisation had made the elected members and officials to tread cautiously. Along with that, lopsided priorities in preparing projects, political considerations in apportioning the funds among the elected members and the inordinate delay in commencing the works on time had also contributed to the low utilisation rate. The EMS Housing Scheme was one of the major projects entrusted with the civic bodies. The setback in preparing the list of beneficiaries had a telling impact on the utilisation levels.
