MPs in quandary: Lawmakers yet to donate MPLAD funds to coronavirus relief

MPs say there is pressure from their constituents to distribute personal protective equipment in hospitals in their constituencies

After appeals by Vice-President 

M Venkaiah Naidu, who is also chairman of the Rajya Sabha, and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to all the Members of Parliament to contribute at least Rs 1 crore each from their respective MPLAD (MP Local Area Development) funds to the central pool for the fight against coronavirus, just around 250 MPs had given their consent to make such a contribution till March 30. Rajya Sabha Secretary P P K Ramacharyulu said this during a meeting on Tuesday. There are more than 780 MPs in the Houses together. Of them, many Opposition MPs wanted to donate their MPLAD money to either the state governments, run by their parties, or directly to hospitals in their constituencies or states. Let alone the Opposition MPs, many MPs of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party are yet to donate their MPLAD funds to the central pool. They say there is pressure from their constituents to distribute personal protective equipment in hospitals in their constituencies.

Slipping through the net

The Centre on Tuesday struggled to explain how 90 tonnes of medical protective equipment from India landed in Serbia on Sunday. With India prohibiting the export of personal protective equipment (PPE) with effect from March 19, the health and external affairs ministries passed the buck on the commerce ministry. At the daily press conference on Covid-19 on Tuesday, Luv Agarwal, joint secretary, Ministry of Health, said he had no knowledge of the consignment. On Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had asked India’s heads of missions abroad to procure PPE for the country. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Serbia, however, had tweeted on Sunday: “The second cargo Boeing 747 with 90 tonnes of medical protective equipment landed from India to Belgrade today. The transportation of valuable supplies purchased by the Serbian government has been fully funded by the EU, while UNDP Serbia organised the flight and ensured the fastest possible delivery.”

Congress sees a chance

The Congress Working Committee, the party’s highest decision-making body, will meet via videoconferencing on Thursday. The Congress has asked its state governments to be proactive in helping the poor, who have faced the brunt of the nationwide 21-day lockdown to fight Covid-19. The party will roll out its plans on Thursday, but the thinking is that this could be its opportunity to tell the poor of the country that the party stands for them. At least since 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been projecting his government, as also the Bharatiya Janata Party, as pro-poor with a focus on “garib kalyan”. The Congress believes the chaos in the wake of the lockdown, which saw swarms of people migrate back home, could help it regain its place among the poor.