Date:13/03/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/03/13/stories/2007031317410300.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Waste management funds largely unspent

Staff Reporter

Revised estimates for 2006-07 show Rs. 30 crore unutilised

CHENNAI : The tardiness in spending on core areas such as solid waste management and maintenance by the Chennai Corporation in the last financial year was shown up in the financial statements presented the Corporation as part of budget here on Monday.

The revised estimates for 2006-07 showed that nearly Rs. 30 crore of allocations made remained unspent and that capital income was over-estimated. Officials blamed the elections for the under-spending.

Only Rs. 3 crore of the Rs. 14.5 crore allocated for solid waste management was actually spent for the 2006-'07 financial year.

The capital expenditure on bridges of Rs. 25 crore, on the other hand, stood at nearly twice the allocation of Rs. 12.6 crore.

Buildings, storm water drains and basic amenities for schools also showed significantly lower expenditure than the allocation.

Similar trends are visible in the amounts spent on maintenance.

The total revenue expenditure on maintenance outstripped allocation by at least Rs. 20 crore, largely due to flood relief that took Rs. 35 crore more than the allocation.

By contrast, Rs. 48 lakh was spent for maintenance of roads, against the Rs. 1.4 crore allocation.

Only 10 per cent of the allocation for maintenance of streetlights or Rs. 11,000 of Rs. 1.1 lakh was spent. Anganwadi centres also saw about one-third of the allocation of Rs. 1.12 crore being spent on maintenance.

Solid waste management proposals include the purchase of compactor and grappler vehicles, roads and lighting and dumping yards and a composting yard at Kodungaiyur.

Improving facilities at anganwadis and schools also form the subject of several budgetary proposals for the 2007-'08 financial year.