Bhartiya No. 1 (Nationalist) 16 December 2010

Bihar has scrapped Legislator LAD Fund

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Bihar govt scraps fund allocation under LAD for legislators

15/12/2010

Patna, Dec 14 (PTI) In an effort to weed out corruption in Bihar, the state government today decided to scrap the existing allocation of funds under the Local Area Development (LAD) scheme for MLAs and MLCs.
A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting of the state cabinet presided over by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, in which Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi was also present, Cabinet department Principal Secretary Afzal Amanullah told reporters here.
The decision will come into force on April 1, 2011.
Kumar had recently raised the issue at a meeting of NDA legislators.
Amanullah said the Cabinet had on December 10 decided in principle to scrap the allocation of LAD funds for MLAs and MLCs.
He said the state Planning and Development departments had been tasked with formulating an alternative scheme for LAD.
The meeting also decided to obtain Rs 1,000 crore soft loan from World Bank for the Kosi Flood Recovery Project.
The meeting discussed the roadmap for good governance for making Bihar a developed state by pursuing the development with justice by 2015 and ensuring empowerment of women, he said.

https://news.in.msn.com/national/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4696918

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Bhartiya No. 1 (Nationalist) 16 December 2010

Common funds pool on cards

OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

Patna, Dec. 13: After deciding to scrap the legislators’ local area development (LAD) funds the state government has decided to create a pool of Rs 318 crore to implement the schemes recommended by the legislators.

There are total 318 legislators in the two Houses of the state legislature (243+75). If the common pool is split equally among the legislators, projects worth Rs 1 crore would come up in each one’s area.

But under the new plan, the legislators would have no control on the executing agency or on the quantum of funds to be spent on a particular project. They would only have the right to recommend the work required in their respective areas to the rural development department. The department would get the work done by issuing tenders and engaging competent agencies according to the scheme’s requirements.

Deputy chief minister, Sushil Kumar Modi described the government’s decision to abolish the LAD fund as a “historic step” in the direction to curb corruption and ensure a better quality of work. “The alternative model will purge the political set up at the ground level besides ensuring better quality of work,” Modi said.

Modi has also demanded the Centre to follow suit and abolish the MPLAD fund.

The NDA’s opponents have, however, interpreted Modi’s demand as a “ploy” to put political pressure on the UPA-II government at the Centre.

But according to analysis in the context of the funds given to the lawmakers and the work done on the ground, Modi’s demand is apparently, based on what experts describe as “valid reasons”.

Studies carried out by the Union ministry of statistics and programmes implementation, various parliamentary committees and other agencies have brought to the fore instances of misuse of MPLAD funds. The MPLAD fund was introduced in 1993 followed by the introduction of MLA/MLC fund in Bihar and other states.

Statistics point out that in Bihar only 35 per cent of the assets built on the legislators’ fund were of standard quality. While about 12 per cent of the work done has been found “useless”, 52 per cent has been found “sub-standard”.

https://www.telegraphindia.com/1101214/jsp/bihar/story_13295108.jsp