Mass financial improprities on Sports bodies: Aiyer

New Delhi, Aug 23: Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Mani Shankar Aiyer today said massive financial improprities had taken place in the grant to NGOs in the past, which was delaying the process of settling the matters related to current unutilised amounts by these bodies.

At present, there were 7,235 cases of unutilised grants amounting to Rs 143.72 crore. This amount has been brought down from Rs 1233.4 crore invloving 10,576 cases as it stood in March 2005, he told the Rajya Sabha during the Question Hour.

Replying to a supplementary, he said there were only 12 National Sports Federations which had not furnished the utilisation certificates.

Mr Aiyer said the grants-in-aid schemes for NGOs for youth and adolescents had been streamlined in 2005-06 providing greater role to state governments in terms of scrutiny, pre-appraisal and prioritisation of NGO proposals for consideration by the Ministry.

With efect from the current financial year, the transfer of funds through the electronic clearnace system had been adopted and the sanctions were posted on the Ministry's website, he added.

Also, he said, a drive had been launched to reconcile the Utilisation Certificates in repsect of each grantee institution and NGO, who have received funds under different schemes of the Ministry in the past so as to enable the government to arrive at the final position of pending UCs.

UNI