People’s representatives cutting across party lines have come forward to extend financial help through their Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) and MLA funds for dealing with the crisis arising out of the coronavirus pandemic.

Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said he is releasing Rs 1 crore from his MP fund for his constituency to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. Union Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan also donated Rs 1 crore from his MPLAD funds for treatment of coronavirus infected people in Bihar.

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, A.K. Antony, and Shashi Tharoor have allocated funds from their respective MPLADS money to fight coronavirus in their constituencies. Mathura MP Hema Malini has also released Rs 1 crore from her MPLADS fund for countering the virus.

The ministry of statistics and programme implementation has issued fresh guidelines allowing the use of MPLADS funds for the purpose. It issued a circular granting one-time dispensation for utilising funds under MPLADS to address the challenges in the fight against COVID-19. This will facilitate MPs to recommend funds for purchase of equipments for government hospitals/dispensaries for medical testing and screening of patients and also facilitate in setting up other related facilities in their respective constituencies. 

What is MPLADS?

The Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) is a central sector scheme fully funded by the government of India. The annual MPLADS fund entitlement per MP constituency is Rs 5 crore.

On December 23, 1993, the Prime Minister announced the scheme in the Parliament. Initially the MPLADS was under the control of the ministry of rural development.  The guidelines were issued in February 1994, covering the concept, implementation and monitoring of the scheme. The scheme was transferred to the ministry of statistics and programme implementation in October 1994. The guidelines were subsequently revised. 

When the scheme was launched, an amount of Rs 5 lakh per MP was allotted. It became Rs 1 crore per annum per MP constituency from 1994-95. This was stepped up to Rs 2 crore from 1998-99 and now it is Rs 5 crore.

The present comprehensive revision of guidelines is based on the experience gained over the years and having considered the suggestions made by the various stakeholders including MPs, both the committees of the Lok Sabha/Rajya Sabha, NABARD consultancy services (NABCONS) and Comptroller and Auditor General of India in its reports.

How does the scheme work?

The objective of the scheme is to enable MPs to to recommend works of developmental nature for creation of durable community assets and for provision of basic facilities, including community infrastructure, based on locally felt needs.

Under the scheme, preference is given to works relating to national priorities, such as provision of drinking water, public health, education, sanitation, roads, etc. 

The elected Lok Sabha Members can recommend works in their respective constituencies. The elected members of the Rajya Sabha can recommend works anywhere in the state from which they are elected. Nominated members of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha can recommend works for implementation, anywhere in the country.

MPLADS works can be implemented in areas affected by natural calamities and biological, chemical, radiological hazards, etc. MPs from the non-affected areas of the state/UT can also recommend permissible works upto a maximum of Rs 25 lakh per annum in the affected are in that state/UT.

In order to accord special attention to the development of areas inhabited by Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), 15 per cent of MPLADS funds are to be utilized for areas inhabited by SC population and 7.5 per cent for areas inhabited by ST population. 

If an elected MP finds the need to contribute MPLADS funds, to a place outside that state/UT or outside the constituency, the MP can recommend eligible works, under the guidelines up to a maximum of Rs 25 lakh in a financial year. Such a gesture on the part of an MP will promote national unity, harmony, and fraternity among the people, at the grass root level. 

The funds released under the scheme are non-lapsable. The entitlement of funds not released in a particular year is carried forward to the subsequent years, subject to eligibility.

Implementation of the scheme

The role of the MP is limited only upto recommendation of works. Thereafter, it is the responsibility of the district authority to sanction, execute and complete the works recommended by the MP within the stipulated time period.

The ministry of statistics and programme implementation has been responsible for the policy formulation, release of funds and prescribing monitoring mechanism for implementation of the scheme. 

A department in each state/UT is designated as the nodal department with the overall responsibility of supervision, monitoring and coordination of the MPLADS implementation with the districts and other line departments. 

The government of India informs the state nodal department about the MPLADS funds released to the district authorities. The district authorities report the status of MPLADS implementation to the government of India and state nodal department.

The district authority is empowered to examine the eligibility of works, sanction funds and select the implementing agencies, supervise the overall execution, and monitor the scheme at the ground level. 

The district authorities get the works executed through the line departments, local implementing agencies or other government agencies, as well as through reputed NGOs. 

Unspent amount

According to the ministry, a cumulative amount of Rs 5,275.24 crore remained unspent under MPLADS as on March 4, 2020. 

The unspent amount under the scheme was Rs 4,103.97 crore on March 31, 2019, Rs 4,877.71 crore on March 31, 2018 and Rs 5,029.31 crore on March 31, 2017.

The government released Rs 53,704.75 crore under MPLAD scheme out of which Rs 51,267.75 crore was spent as on March 4, 2020, Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

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