E-Paper
State in need, but Himachal Pradesh MPs fail to access entitled funds
The central government releases new funds only when the allocated budgets are spent, and certificates are submitted. This is where the state bureaucracy appears to have faltered, say experts as ₹47 crore allocated to the state’s four Lok Sabha members remains with Centre
: At the time when Himachal Pradesh needs financial assistance to cope with the challenges due to the recent floods and landslides, ₹47 crore allocated to the state’s four Lok Sabha members remains with the central government. The release of this crucial budget is at a standstill due to the absence of utilisation and audit certificates besides MP recommendations.
According to a report of the Union ministry of statistics and programme implementation, the four MPs were supposed to receive a total of ₹75 crore, including past allocations. However, over the course of four-and-a-half years, the state managed to secure only ₹28 crore. Of this, ₹8.64 crore is still unspent and with the respective district collectors.
The member of Parliament’s local area development (MPLAD) fund is intended for development projects in each MP’s constituency, recommended by the MPs themselves. But, the situation has turned dire as the MPs face extensive delays in accessing these funds.
Kangra BJP MP Kishan Kapoor, for instance, hasn’t received an instalment since February 2022.
Similarly, Hamirpur BJP MP Anurag Thakur last received funds in July 2022.
Mandi Congress MP Pratibha Singh and Shimla BJP MP Suresh Kashyap also faced substantial delays, with their last instalments arriving in December 2022 and March 2023, respectively.
Missing documents delay new instalments
Experts attribute this lag to a combination of the MPs’ “inactivity” and the negligence of the state bureaucracy. The central government releases new funds only when the allocated budgets are spent, and the necessary certificates are submitted. This is where the state bureaucracy appears to have faltered.
The current dilemma revolves around the pending MP recommendations of all four members and the absence of provisional utilisation certificates. Audit certificates for MPs Suresh Kashyap and Pratibha Singh are also missing, further obstructing the release of new instalments. The central government is expected to release MP funds annually, but these documents are prerequisites.
Questions are now being raised about how these MPs, who have struggled to spend even ₹28 crore over four years, will be able to use the remaining ₹47 crore in just six months.
Each MP receives ₹5 crore annually through the MP fund, with some reductions during the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite these circumstances, Himachal Pradesh is still owed ₹75 crore, including past allocations.
Cong’s Pratibha Singh has highest pending amount
According to the MSPI report, MPs Anurag Thakur and Kishan Kapoor have three instalments pending for 2022-23 and one for 2023-24. Suresh Kashyap has two for 2022-23 and one for 2023-24, while Pratibha Singh has two for 2022-23 and 2023-24.
Pratibha Singh has the highest amount pending with the Centre, at ₹19.50 crore. Anurag Thakur and Kishan Kapoor each have ₹10 crore pending and Suresh Kashyap has ₹7.5 crore awaiting release.
During their four-and-a-half-year terms, only ₹7 crore each were disbursed to the Hamirpur and Kangra parliamentary constituencies. In contrast, Shimla MP Suresh Kashyap has managed to secure the most with ₹9.5 crore, while Mandi MP Pratibha Singh received the least amount of ₹4.5 crore.
Amit Pal, the political secretary of Pratibha Singh, defended the utilisation of funds, stating that ₹6.65 crore have been spent on development projects. Despite a relatively short tenure, she received ₹12.5 crore from the Centre, more than half of which has already been allocated to initiatives.
Shimla MP Suresh Kashyap said he has no remaining funds and hasn’t had any for the past six months. He received ₹12 crore, including the previous MP instalment of ₹2.5 crore. He agreed that the delay in receiving new instalments was due to the absence of utilisation and audit documentation.
Kangra MP Kishan Kapoor, who is unwell at present, declined comment, while Hamirpur MP Anurag Thakur was not available for comment.
Meanwhile, Bollywood actors Aamir Khan and Kangana Ranaut have donated ₹25 lakh and ₹5 lakh, respectively, towards the state’s disaster relief fund to rebuild the flood-hit regions.
