Chairperson says unutilised grants can’t be to the tune of Rs 7.66 crore
TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: At a time when the government is facing an acute resource crunch, a whopping government grant to the tune of Rs 7.66 crore lies unspent and idle with the Cuncolim Municipal Council.
The state audit for the financial year 2012-12 has come out with startling revelations, saying that government grants given to the Cuncolim civic body are lying unspent since the last one decade.
The audit maintained that the grants are sanctioned by the Director of Municipal Administration with a pre-condition that the same are to be utilised within one year of its sanction. “It is also one of the conditions of the DMA that unless the previous grants are fully utilised, no further grants are to be released,” the audit said, adding “however, in spite of this, the DMA is sanctioning huge amount for grants without obtaining utilisation certificates for grants which are already sanctioned.”
The audit has brought the lapse to the notice of the higher authority for necessary action, while awaiting compliance.
When contacted, Cuncolim Municipal Chairperson Devendra Desai, however, begged to differ. “I don’t think, the unspent amount lying idle with the civic body is Rs seven crore. The unspent grant with the civic body may be only Rs four crore,” he said.
Attributing the mismatch between the grants sanctioned and utilised to the delay in submitting the utilisation certificates, Desai said there has been a delay in submitting the utilisation certificates to the government. “The state audit may not be entirely at fault in pin pointing the lapse. I feel there has been a delay in submitting the utilisation certificates because some of the works are still underway,” he added.
Replying to another question, Desai said the Rs four-crore grant lying unspent with the civic body pertains to the golden jubilee grant of Rs two crore, besides hot mixing work and other minor works.
