SHILLONG: The North Eastern Council, the regional planning body, may get more power to control and disburse fund under the non-lapsable central pool of resources (NLCPR) meant for development projects for the Northeastern states.
Union Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal, who was in the city on Monday, said the Ministry would look into the Council’s demand for disbursement of central fund to it instead of DoNER citing better monitoring as the reason.
Around Rs 15,000 crore under NLCPR has remained unutilised. “Now DoNER is getting fund and it provides it to NEC, but the Council says they can monitor the fund more efficiently if it is provided to it directly,” the minister said and added that the matter would be discussed in the Finance Ministry. The objective of the NLCPR-central scheme is to ensure speedy development of the northeastern region by increasing the targeted flow of budgetary resource for financing social and physical infrastructure projects pertaining to subjects in the Union and concurrent lists of the Constitution.
NEC had also demanded for an increase in the yearly allocation to Rs 2,000 crore from the current Rs 800-900 crore. The minister said the matter would be considered.
However, before the fund come to NEC, the Council has been tasked with supervising projects under various heads like power, roads and tourism.
Meghwal asked NEC to focus on tourism and submit a list of development projects to the Centre for consideration in the next budget.
On Digital India programme, the minister said, “I have also told them (NEC) to focus on the issue of laying optical fibre cable as without augmentation of towers and Digital India programme, the Government cannot fulfil the objective of Direct Benefit Transfer.”
The Council was also asked to review the ongoing road projects on quarterly basis and assured that the Centre would provide necessary fund through the Ministry of DoNER.
Keeping in view the ongoing power crisis in the State, Meghwal said NEC can prepare a plan and submit it to DoNER Ministry. “If there is a shortage of fund for the power sector, we can provide funds under supplementary grants,” he said.
The Minister emphasised on the regional connectivity as per the ‘Bharat Mala’ Programme.
