Central probe teams on way to Bengal to inquire into complaints about schemes’ execution

Senior bureaucrats at Nabanna said the visit of the teams dropped a clear hint that the funds under the schemes may not be released in the ongoing financial year

Nabanna: File image

Pranesh Sarkar, TT, Calcutta, 06.12.23 : The ministry of rural development has decided to send teams to Bengal once again to inquire into complaints related to the execution of rural employment and housing schemes, for which the release of funds was stopped by Delhi in the past one year or so alleging irregularities.

Senior bureaucrats at Nabanna said the visit of the teams dropped a clear hint that the funds under the schemes may not be released in the ongoing financial year.

"The Centre repeatedly sent teams to Bengal in the name of conducting inquiries into allegations of irregularities in the execution of various rural development schemes in the past two years. The state sent action-taken reports (ATRs) whenever the Centre asked us to initiate steps after the visit of Union government officials. However, the funds were not released. There seems to be another attempt to delay the release of the funds further," said a bureaucrat.

Sources in the state panchayat department said the teams would visit districts like North 24-Parganas, South 24-Parganas, Bankura, Birbhum, East Burdwan, Cooch Behar, Howrah, Hooghly, Purulia, North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur and Jalpaiguri between December 5 and 8.

The central teams will then send reports directly to the ministry of rural development by December 15.

Sources in the state panchayat department were not sure what kind of complaints the ministry had received about the schemes, particularly when they could not be implemented over the past one year or so because of the non-release of funds.

A senior Bengal government official said the central teams might verify the ATR sent by the state recently.

"The Centre had sent a letter in mid-November to the Bengal government, pointing out some issues related to the 100-day rural employment guarantee scheme and the rural housing scheme and asked the state to submit another ATR by November 30. The teams are likely to investigate whether steps were actually taken on the ground or it was only mentioned in the report sent to Delhi," said the official.

The sources said the state had taken several steps whenever the central teams pointed out any lacunae in the execution of the schemes.

Trinamul Congress insiders said the decision to send the teams again indicated that the BJP-led Centre was under tremendous pressure.

"Abhishek Banerjee first launched an agitation in Delhi and Calcutta demanding the release of funds under rural development schemes.... Later, the chief minister herself announced that she would lead the agitation ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. It is clear the BJP-led Centre is under pressure and that's why it is trying to delay the release of funds further by sending central teams," said a Trinamul leader.

The BJP said the central teams were visiting the state to check whether all steps were taken to prevent corruption under the schemes.

"The state government sent false ATRs. The state neither recovered the funds misappropriated under the 100-day job scheme nor initiated legal action against panchayat functionaries who were involved in the defalcation. So, it is justified if the Centre sends teams repeatedly to the state to check whether steps were actually taken to prevent corruption before releasing funds under the schemes," said a state BJP leader.