Date:14/09/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/09/14/stories/2006091404430900.htm

National

Backward regions fund may be inaugurated next month

Special Correspondent

Sub committee of National Development Council on Panchayati Raj asks for suggestions from States on proposed draft guidelines

Fund covers 250 districts; annual allocation is Rs. 3,750 crores

Chief Secretaries to meet on strengthening PRIs further

NEW DELHI: The Empowered Sub-Committee of the National Development Council on Panchayati Raj institutions has asked the States to give their suggestions on the proposed draft guidelines on the Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF) at the earliest so that it could be finalised by the end of the month.

Talking to reporters after a meeting of the Committee, Union Panchayati Raj Minister Mani Shanker Aiyar said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was likely to inaugurate the BRGF in October, when the UPA Government completed its half tenure.

Mr. Aiyar said the meeting also announced that a conference of Chief Secretaries of the States followed by that of Chief Ministers would be held to discuss how to strengthen PRIs further as also review critical issues such as activity mapping and setting up of district planning committees.

He said the Ministry was also awaiting reports from the National Council of Applied Research to prepare a devolution step for the BRGF to make it more accurate and authentic.

The Backward Regions Grant Fund covers 250 districts and the total annual allocation for the programme is Rs. 3,750 crores for the 2006-07. This will also continue for the entire 11th Plan period (2007-2012). Of this amount, Rs. 250 crore per annum at the rate of Rs. 1 crore per district is for capacity building and the balance is an untied development fund.

Mr. Aiyar said efforts were on to prepare a devolution index that would reflect the States' implementation of the policies and institutional changes to meet the goals and vision of devolution to Panchayati Raj institutions as under the 73rd Constitutional amendment brought about in 1992.

The State Governments have also been asked to take urgent steps to form district planning committees, which is necessary for the preparation of States Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-2012) and the annual plan 2007-2008. Also, the States have been told to decide on the formula for distribution of local government component of the State plan and indicate the broad order of resources that would be available to different levels over the next five years.