Rs 4335 cr under 14th FC being cleared
Funds start pouring in for civic bodies
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Jan 23: Keeping up its commitment, the Central Government has started flow of funds to Jammu and Kashmir Government for Panchayats by releasing first instalment of Rs 282 crore and deciding to clear 14th Finance Commission grants for the civic bodies worth Rs 4335 crore for the State, which the elected bodies would start getting soon.
“The funds have started flowing. The Central Government has kept its commitment made before conduct of the elections that funds would be released to elected Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies. First instalment of Rs 282 crore has been received by the State Government from the Centre for release to newly elected Panchayats for taking up developmental works,” official sources told the Excelsior.
The Centre, according to sources, have assured release of more and adequate funds very soon for the Panchayats as promised before conduct of elections and there would be sufficient funding to the Panchayats well before the end of current financial year of 2018-19, which still has two months to go.
The funds would be released to the Panchayats depending upon their area, terrain and requirement, sources said.
Admitting that release of Rs 282 crore for Panchayats was a meagre amount as there were about 4490 Panchayats in the State, sources said this was just the first instalment and adequate funds would pour in during next few days.
“We have sufficient funds with the Central Government pending for both Panchayats as well as Municipalities. With completion of formalities, the Centre has assured that the funds would start pouring in,” sources said.
Meanwhile, the Central Government has decided to clear Rs 4335 crore worth Central grants meant for Panchayats and Municipalities in Jammu and Kashmir under the Award of 14th Finance Commission, which had been stopped in the absence of elected civic bodies.
“The grants would start pouring in,” sources said, adding there would be no dearth of funds for Panchayats and Municipalities in the coming days as the Central Government had promised to release all kind of grants due to civic bodies in Jammu and Kashmir, which had been held up in the absence of elections to them,” sources said, adding majority of grants to such bodies are released only if elections are held to them. Otherwise, these grants are blocked pending elections.
Sources noted that 14th Finance Commission grants for Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies were also exclusively mentioned for elected bodies and couldn’t be released to the State Government by the Centre as elected Panchayats and Municipalities had ceased to exist long back.
Central grants running into hundreds of crores had been stopped by the Government for Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies in the absence of elections to them. While elected Municipalities had ceased to exist after completion of their five-year term in March 2010, the Panchayats had completed their term in June 2016.
Grants of the Municipalities were pending for last about eight years while the funds of Panchayats were blocked for about two and half years. The Central Government had made it a point that the grants would be released only to the elected bodies despite being approached by representatives of previous PDP-BJP dispensation seeking relaxation in release of grants citing adverse security situation leading to delay in conduct of elections to Panchayats and Municipalities.
However, the Centre had rejected request of the State Government and insisted on conduct of elections to both Panchayats and Municipalities for release of grants. While the previous PDP-BJP Government failed to hold the elections, they were held from October to December last year during the Governor’s Rule in the State. The elected bodies have since been constituted.
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