For entirely different reasons, Parliamentarians from Delhi and West Bengal have not adopted villages under the Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 11.
Of the 108 MPs from both Houses of Parliament yet to adopt a village under the programme, more than half – 65 – are from these two States.
The list of 108 MPs also includes three Ministers : Defence Minister Manohar Parikkar, Science & Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan and Minister of State in Urban Development Babul Supriya (Babul Supriyo) Baral.
Dr. Vardhan is from Delhi and Babul Supriyo from West Bengal though the other BJP MP from the State, S. S. Ahluwalia, has adopted a village in his constituency Darjeeling.
In the case of Delhi, it is the absence of villages in the true sense of the term that is holding back the 10 MPs – specially the seven BJP members. Delhi's smallest local administrative unit is a ward which does not fit into the SAGY guidelines.
The Rural Development Ministry – which is administering the programme – has suggested they adopt villages on the outskirts of Delhi. But since MPs have to dip into their MPLADS (Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme) funds for the SAGY, they are not keen to adopt villages outside their constituency.
As for West Bengal, the near total refusal to participate in the programme cuts across the political divide, putting all four players in the State’s often bitter politics on the same side. While two MPs of the Trinamool Congress and one from the BJP have adopted villages, the remaining 39 from the Lok Sabha and all 16 from the Rajya Sabha have given it the cold shoulder.
Explaining the Trinamool rationale for ignoring the SAGY, Lok Sabha member Saugata Roy told The Hindu that the party decided not to participate after it became evident that there was no additional funding for the programme. “The government wants us to use our MPLADS funds to adopt a village and turn it into a model one.”
On using Centrally-sponsored schemes and State schemes for the model village, he pointed out that CSSs were also dovetailed into MPLADS. “We are against dovetailing of MPLADS. Where is the scope for an MP using MPLADS as per his/her discretion if it is dovetailed with the schemes? The Railways and HRD Ministries are also asking us to use MPLADS for their programmes,’’ Mr. Roy added.
CPI(M)’s stanceIn the case of the CPI(M), non-participation in the SAGY is confined to only West Bengal as its MPs from Kerala and Tripura have adopted villages. Of the view that the SAGY is nothing but a farce, the CPI(M)’s Lok Sabha MP from Raiganj, Mohd Salim, said the party had to also factor in the additional problems in implementing it in view of the Trinamool government in the State. “Also, why only one village, as an MP, I have a responsibility towards every village in my constituency.’’
