SHILLONG: Opposition Leader Donkupar Roy on Wednesday lamented that huge funds were being allocated to the Integrated Basin Livelihood Development Programme (IBLDP) in the State whereas the actual expenditure was quite low.
Participating in the general discussion on the Budget, Roy asserted that in 2014-15, the Budget outlay for the IBLDP was Rs 177 crore whereas the actual expenditure was only Rs 21 crore.
He added that in 2015-16, the Budget outlay was Rs 163 crore whereas the available outlay was only around Rs 12 crore.
According to Roy, even in the Agriculture department in 2014 -15, the revised outlay was Rs 488 crore but the actual expenditure was only Rs 241 crore.
He pointed out the need to ensure that the funds earmarked for various programmes are fully utilized.
Prior to this, Roy expressed disappointment that even though it was an open fact that the State was reeling under an economic crisis, there was no indication of the GSDP or the growth rate in the Budget presented by the chief minister.
He advised the State government to spend wisely on roads, education and health and to spare a thought for the economy of the people.
Speaking on the road sector, Roy asked the government to attach greater importance to the sector with enhanced funds even as he accused the government of not following up on the proposals for national highways submitted to the Union government.
He also censured the State government for failing to convince the pressure groups who are opposing construction of a vital road in Rambrai owing to apprehension that the road would be utilized for uranium mining activities.
The Opposition Leader also stressed on the need to build a road along the international border from East to West which, he said, would bring tremendous benefits for the border population.
On the education sector, Roy said the government needs to pump in more money, adding “the quality of teachers will improve when the government pays them good salary”.
With regards to SSA teachers in the State, he pointed out that the salary of peons, chowkidars and Grade IV employees were higher than SSA teachers in Meghalaya.
The Opposition Leader also said health care should be available for all in the State and asserted that the government’s duty is to ensure that the PHCs maintained by NGOs are run well. He, however, asked the government not to leave the full responsibility of PHCs with the NGOs alone.
He mentioned that the government should acquire the best equipment available for the health centres and also employ the best people to operate such equipment.
Highlighting the importance of health sub centres in the State, he called for sanction of more sub centres.
On the power sector, Roy lamented that power supply was not regular even in Shillong with complaints of power fluctuations and power cuts. He alleged that villages have been electrified only on papers but the fact is that many villages in the State remain without power for months.
Recalling that lots of MoUs were signed for power projects, Roy claimed that implementation of such projects have been tardy. The Opposition leader also asked the government not to ignore small and micro power projects in the State.
Roy also expressed concern over the large scale migration of rural people to urban areas and feared that the situation would turn worse in the capital city of Shillong if the migration was allowed to continue.
On the IT sector, he said that information in most of the government department websites were outdated including the website of the Meghalaya Public Service Commission.
The Opposition Leader also shared the idea of teaching a common language to Garo and Khasi children in Meghalaya like Nagamese in Nagaland to strengthen the bond between the two communities.
“We should start the idea from the school level,” he suggested.
