Delhi govt says, MCD 'unable' to spend much under SBM

A day after the Centre raised the issue of "under-utilisation" of funds under the Swachh Bharat Mission, the Delhi government today said, the municipal corporations were "not able to spend much" and hence additional funds could not be claimed in 2016-17 and 2017-18.
Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri recently wrote to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, stating that Rs 104.75 crore were released by the ministry in 2015 against the allocation of Rs 349.75 crore, sources said.
"Out of this, a sum of Rs 32.52 crore only has been spent so far and the balance is lying unutilised," a source said.

Reacting to the issue, the AAP-led Delhi government countered that BJP-led corporations (North, South and East Delhi Municipal Corporations) were "not able to spend much".
"They have failed to spend under major Solid Waste Management component as they are not able to provide matching contribution of over 50 per cent share. (As per revised formula the Centre gives 35 per cent, UT 11.67% and the rest is urban local bodies share in the SWM)," the city government said in a statement today.
It further said that the Centre gave it Rs 104.75 crore under the SBM in 2014-15 and 2015-16. And, the Delhi government contributed Rs 45.11 crore as the state share.

"Delhi's total allocation under the SBM is Rs 349.76 crore -- Rs 264 crore under the SWM, Rs 50 crore under individual toilets, Rs 5.15 crore under community toilets and the rest for capacity building and IEC activities," it added.

Both Centre and state share get distributed among five local bodies plus the DUSIB.
"DUSIB is constructing 1,213 community toilets under the SBM funds. But it has already constructed about 12,000 CTS under the Delhi government's fund," the statement said.
The Delhi government has also increased the state share for individual household toilets from Rs 1,333 to Rs 4,000 per beneficiary, it said.

"Since the required utilisation has not been made by the municipal corporations, additional funds could not be claimed in 2016-17 and 2017-18," it said.
The Centre, according to the sources, had also asked the Delhi government to step up expenditure under the scheme to improve services.