Bihar wasting funds meant for devp: Raghuvansh

New Delhi, Jan 21: Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh has criticised the Bihar government for not utilising the central funds granted for the development of the state.

Refuting Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's charge that the RJD Ministers at the centre were denying funds for the development of the poor people of the state, Dr Singh told sources that it was the other way round as the state government wasted Rs 1000 crore granted for the various rural development projects.

''We just warn the state government that if they do not use the funds, it will lapse and the people will not benefit. Still, we give the state government funds,'' Dr Singh said.

Citing an example of the failure of the Bihar government, Dr Singh said under the National Horticulture Programme, Bihar was granted Rs 84 crore last year but it took only Rs 31 crore of it and spent a dismal Rs 3 lakh. This year the state government is to get Rs 115 crore but seeing the past record it appears the state will not be able to use the amount and lose about Rs 175 crore.

''We just advise the state government to take the funds meant for it,'' he said.

Reacting to the Chief Minister's charge that the Rural Development Ministry has recognised only 66 lakh people living under the poverty line in the state while the state government feels that there were about 85 lakh people who were under the BPL on the basis of 15 point indicator. ''During the bifurcation of Bihar, the total number of BPL people were 90 lakh who were divided as 55 lakh in Bihar and 35 lakh in Jharkhand. This happened during the NDA rule. However, we got the figure corrected to 55 lakh in Bihar and 23 lakh in Jharkhand on the basis of the formula adopted during the division of Uttar Pradesh-Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh-Chhatisgarh,'' he clarified.

Mr Kumar had met Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia this week seeking his help in asking the Centre to resolve the difference in the figure of 5O lakh BPL people being quoted by Food Ministry and 66 lakh BPL people given by the Rural Development Ministry.

According to Mr Kumar, the state had over 85 lakh people living below poverty who need to be given food subsidy under the centrally sponsored Public Distribution System.

UNI