SHILLONG: Chief Minister Mukul Sangma on Tuesday repudiated the allegation that the State has utilised only Rs 34 crore out of Rs 244 crore sanctioned under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY).
Sangma said the total fund received over the years after RKVY was implemented in the State was Rs 244.56 crore and that the utilisation certificates were also furnished. He also said the funding pattern is determined by how much the State is investing in agriculture and allied sectors.
“In 2015-16, in respect to all the centrally sponsored schemes, since the Government of India was embarking on a new approach of modifying the whole funding pattern to 50:50, state governments in the North East took it up aggressively and prevailed upon GOI that this model is not workable,” he said, adding, “If projects have to be implemented in the North East, the funding pattern has to be either 100 per cent for all those under 100 per cent and 90:10 for all those under 90:10.”
Highlighting the fallacies of central schemes, Sangma said the Government of India’s “one size fits all” approach has done damage to the nation and that many schemes with same guidelines would not work as the challenges faced by states are dissimilar.
Though the 14th Finance Commission has increased direct transfer to states to 42 per cent from 32 per cent, yet the total transferable resources to states remain the same because indirect transfer comes down, he said, adding, “the total transfer to the states in the past by successive governments has been around 64-65 per cent of the total resources available with the Union Government.”
The Chief Minister criticised the Centre for putting the northeastern states and other resource-rich states, like Maharashtra and Gujarat, on the same platform. “Maharashtra is also getting 42 per cent like NE states. On the other hand, the special plan assistance (SPA) as received by the NE states has been withdrawn.”
This, the Chief Minister said, would stall the 99 per cent growth momentum in the North East and so the SPA should be restored.
However, Sangma was all praise for the previous governments at the Centre “for their in-depth understanding of the problem of the NE”.
On the meagre fund, he said, “The release of fund has been suddenly reduced for all NE states. Instead of Rs 262 crore entitlements, we have received only Rs 145.61 crore, a shortfall of Rs 116.45 crore in November,” he said.
Expressing concern over the investment atmosphere as the Union Government has suspended the North East Investment Promotion Policy, 2007, he informed that he would take up the issues with his counterparts in the region.
