Resources from the Chief Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund (CMDRF) and unspent funds parked in various other institutions would be mobilised for rebuilding infrastructure facilities in about 50 flood-affected grama panchayats that are facing acute paucity of funds.
It has been proposed to extend financial assistance to about 50 grama panchayats, including Pandanad, Thiruvanvandoor and Budhanoor that had to bear the brunt of the monsoon fury and do not have adequate own resources to take up reconstruction activities.
Since the rate of tax collection and potential for resource mobilisation are too low in these panchayats, they have to rely heavily on Plan assistance for their routine functions. Financial support is imperative for restoring normality in these panchayats, sources said.
The State Planning Board is understood to have expedited the processes for garnering resources for reconstructing rural infrastructure facilities such as schools, hospitals, anganwadis, roads and bridges that were either washed away or damaged by the floods.
The government has already eased the norms for sectoral allocation of funds in local self-government institutions so that they can reprioritise their needs for the current year and route the resources for the reconstruction activities. It has been proposed to utilise the funds of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) and Pradhan Manthri Grameen Sadak Yojana for such ventures.
Curbs waived
Administrative restrictions on district and block panchayats in taking up works in grama panchayats have been waived so that they can also use their funds for taking up the maintenance of rural roads and other facilities. But permission of the grama panchayats concerned is imperative to take up such works. Decisions have been expedited and hence there will not be any delay in resource reallocation for initiating such works, sources said.
Directions have been given to local bodies to attach top priority to prepare projects for containing and managing natural disasters in the Plan projects for the next financial year.
Planning Board member K.N. Harilal told The Hindu that directions have already been issued to local bodies to defer projects that have not been taken up and also for which administrative sanction has not been issued so far.
Due importance is being given for completing the work on infrastructure facilities in a time-bound manner, Mr. Harilal said.