Sheila denies it, but were SC/ST funds diverted?

Aug 04, 2010 - Age Correspondent |

New Delhi

Despite vehement denials by Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit that no funds were diverted from the special component plan (SCP) meant for the welfare of Scheduled Castes (SC) towards Commonwealth Games projects, the Housing Rights and Land Rights Network claimed on Tuesday that there was indeed diversion of funds to the tune of Rs 744.35 crores.

At a press conference here on Tuesday, the HRLN claimed that the RTI queries responded to by the Delhi government on June 30 showed that there was diversion of funds to various CWG-2010 heads. As per the documents, a total of Rs 677.36 crores was diverted from the SCP fund between 2006-07 and 2010-11. Also, another Rs 66.97 crores, which has not yet been accounted for, is understood to have been diverted towards Games work, taking the total to Rs 744.35 crores.
For instance, during 2009-10, Rs 178.5 crores was taken out from the fund through the public works department for “smooth flow of traffic” during the Games. Similarly, for better water supply during the CWG, Rs 3.4 crores was diverted from these funds to the Delhi Jal Board. The sports and youth departments got Rs 45 crores from these funds without any specified targets.
In fact, the NGO claimed, funds were transferred from the SCP to CWG projects without any specific targets in more than five cases. In 2008-09, Rs 1.19 crore was diverted to the New Delhi Municipal Council without any specific target. In 2007-08, Rs 9.7 crores was diverted for the development of infrastructure at the Chhatrasal and Thayagaraja Stadiums. But the work in question was not actually carried out. The NGO alleged that it was a case of financial mismanagement when funds, which are “non-divertible”, do get diverted without specific targets, or those targets are not met even after the funds are diverted.
News agencies further reported that an internal document of the government justified the diversion, saying that these will be used to develop facilities that would be utilised by all sections of society, irrespective of caste.
Ms Dikshit said on Tuesday: “There has not been any diversion of funds from SC/ST welfare schemes.” Delhi PWD minister Raj Kumar Chauhan, who also holds the portfolio of SC/ST welfare, said that “not a single percentage of funds have been diverted for Games-related projects.” He added that all the funds allocated under the SCP were being spent on SC/ST welfare schemes.

Comments

Shame on all the SC/ST MPs &

SKR

04 Aug 2010 - 13:09

Shame on all the SC/ST MPs & MLAs who kept their mouth shut and let the money to be diverted. these types of atrocities over a period of time create extreme communities and create problem like Naxalism.

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