2023-04-03 19:05:41
Factor this, the school education department was provided an outlay of ‘37,383.36 cr in BE 2022-23. However, at RE stage, it was reduced to ‘32,151.66 cr. Of this, the department was able to utilize only ‘19,926.23 crores till January 31, 2023, a parliamentary committee report notes.
On the reasons for reduction in allocations under Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan – the umbrella mission on school education that also subsumes the mid-day meal scheme – the secretary pointed to the ‘strict compliance’ under the new funding procedure.
He said, “the proposal for ad hoc grants can be processed only if 75% of the previous year’s grants is spent. This resulted in delay in release of funds to states, UTs under Samagra Shiksha and thus, there was a reduction in RE for 2022-23.”
He added that the Single Nodal Agency (SNA) is now operational in almost all states and UTs and thus the expenditure, in all probability should increase in the forthcoming years.
The fund flow disruption concerns were raised in several House reports.
The parliamentary Committee on Environment, Forests & Climate Change noted that the actual utilisation of the ministry in 2022-23 is ‘1,707 cr (till January 2022-23) once morest a RE allocation of ‘2,478 cr. This amounts to regarding 69% budget utilisation which falls short of the 75 percent expenditure target set for third quarter by the Ministry of Finance, it observes.
“While the rule change may have been brought to reduce parking of funds and loss on interest accrued, the approach should have been to reduce collateral damage. The ministry must review the status of states and accounts onboarded and the pending disbursements be cleared as soon as possible,” the parliamentary panel has said.
The panel on the Women and Child Development ministry’s demand for grants said it was constrained to observe that the actual expenditure has been showing a declining trend over the years which is ‘not only worrisome but is also indicative that there is a need to address the issues which are proving as obstacles’.
The ministry on its part submitted that all its schemes are CSS and are thus implemented by the states and UTs which have to meet the new rules to enable the Ministry to release the central share of funds.
The Department of Animal Husbandry informed its associated parliamentary standing committee that “Percentage Expenditure of 98.7% and 98.5% during the year 2020-21 and 2021- 22 was limited to a mere 56.07% (up to the second month of the last quarter) during the year 2022-23 following imposition of financial discipline by the finance ministry”.
“The Department, thus, apprised the Committee that the pace of expenditure was hampered due to opening of SNA and CNA accounts as per the allocation strategy of the Ministry of Finance”, says the parliamentary standing committee report.
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