DIMAPUR, JANUARY 12 (MExN): In another twist to the Rural Development Grant-in-Aid issue, the Nagaland State VDB Secretary Association (NSVDBSA) has issued a statement which, in a way, has rebutted the claims made by the Leader of Opposition and NPF legislators.
It may be recalled that the Leader of Opposition had questioned the NDPP-led PDA government on January 5 as to why it has still not released a sum of Rs 96 crore Grant-in-Aid meant for the VDBs for three years including 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2018-19.
NPF legislators from Dimapur had also claimed that Dimapur district has not received GIA for 2014-15, 2015-2016 and 2017-2018, which it added has been confirmed by Project Director, DRDA and Deputy Commissioner.
It had said that the claims of RD Assistant Director, Hisinle Kent and RD Director, Imlimeren Jamir that GIA Fund for 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2017-18 have been released to Dimapur District along with Peren and Mon before Christmas was ‘false and misleading.’
Now, according to the statement issued by NSVDBSA president, Tohoshe Awomi, the Association taking into account the gravity of the issue at hand conducted a detailed inquiry on the issue in all the 74 RD blocks to find out if there was any misuse of the funds as alleged.
The Association said the inquiry revealed that funds have already been released for three districts namely Dimapur, Peren and Mon and is kept in the account of the Deputy Commissioner who is the chairman of VDB.
It also stated that the release of funds for the majority of RD blocks has been stalled due to certain technicalities as most of the VDBs are yet to furnish required documents such as utilization certificate, audit report of the previous funds released and new scheme proposal which is also required for the release of the fund.
Therefore, the Association has called upon the Block Development Officers (BDOs) to be in their place of posting and help the VDBs to furnish all the required documents for immediate release of the funds without further delay.
It meanwhile appreciated the Leader of Opposition for bringing out this issue in the public domain and playing the role of constructive opposition and highlighting issues that are detrimental for the rural poor.
