Three months left for the end of the current financial year. In this situation, Duare Panchayat elections. And now, after so long, the first installment of the fifteenth finance commission allocation has come to the hands of the state. And there are strict conditions imposed. The decree issued by the Modi government said that if the money does not reach the three levels of panchayat within 10 days, Bengal will have to pay high interest at the market rate. Meanwhile, crores of rupees are owed to the Centre. The state is facing a huge financial burden in the post-Covid scenario. The Modi government is imposing one condition after another. First in the housing scheme, now in the money of the fifteenth finance commission.
What exactly happened? Recently, while approving the allocation of Awas Yojana, the Center also imposed a set of conditions. This is the order again. This order has been issued on allotment except one week before the beginning of the last quarter of the financial year. Earlier, as per the 14th Finance Commission rules, if the money did not reach the panchayat within 15 days of receipt, the Reserve Bank had to pay interest at a fixed rate to the state. This time it has been reduced to 10 days in the fifteenth finance commission. And interest rates are left to the market. If not, the state will have to pay a huge sum of money. Many people think that it is practically a penalty. Therefore, the emphasis has been started on this.
How much money did Bengal get? Bengal was supposed to receive the first installment of the fifteenth finance commission in the current financial year in the month of August-September. But there is a fork in the road with 25 percent of the cost of previous years being online audits. The Modi government said that the money for the current financial year will be available only if it is completed. Bengal also fulfills that condition. Finally, the center was practically forced to release 996 crore 56 lakh rupees for the first installment. According to Navanna sources, on December 23, a letter from New Delhi informed about that. And it is stipulated that the state should distribute this money to all Gram Panchayats, Panchayat Samiti and Zilla Parishad within 10 days of its arrival. It is also mandatory to spend it on projects taken up under the 15th Finance Commission.
What else is known? The money of the 15th Finance Commission is mainly spent on projects related to drainage and drinking water supply. And under the unconditional fund, various infrastructure development works in rural areas starting from road construction. And about 650 crores of the first installment of this unconditional fund is still withheld by the central government. However, Navanna has decided that the allocated money will be sent to the concerned panchayats soon. Work will also start soon.