The Plan fund expenditure during the last financial year has been put at 71 per cent, which is much lower than the fund absorption rate in the previous years.
A Planning Board meeting held here on Tuesday to review the Plan expenditure, found that only Rs.14,251 crore out of the Rs.20,000 crore sanctioned for the year, had been spent. An amount of Rs.5,479 crore was remaining unspent. This was against the 90 per cent spent in 2012-13 and 81 per cent in 2013-14. The meeting decided to seek an explanation from the departments which failed to expend less than 60 per cent of the sanctioned funds.
Course correction
This was aimed at a course correction so that such flaws could be rectified in future. The reports of such departments would be discussed at high-level meetings, involving Ministers, to take corrective steps.
While the Department of Cooperation expended about 200 per cent, Public Works Department expended 150 per cent. The Food and Civil Supplies Department utilised 28 per cent, Industries Department 38 per cent, Housing Department 42 per cent, Planning Department 54 per cent, General Administration 52 per cent, and Revenue Department 20 per cent.
The meeting also discussed the stance to be adopted at the Niti Ayog meeting in New Delhi on May 28.
It was decided to seek more flexibility for Centrally sponsored schemes and also raise concerns about the problems that would arise on an increase in the State share in such schemes from the current 25 to 50 per cent.
