Unspent ₹43,636 cr lies in states' SNA accounts despite higher allocations

More than Rs 43,000 crore remains unutilised in states' SNA accounts under major centrally sponsored schemes, even as Budget sharply raises allocations for education, water and nutrition programmes

Funds for centrally sponsored schemes to the tune of Rs 43,636 crore are lying unspent in the Single Nodal Agency (SNA) accounts of states, with an additional Rs 25,000 crore yet to be transferred to the SNA, as on December 31, 2025, according to Budget documents. The highest unspent balances were under three schemes — Samagra Shiksha, Jal Jeevan Mission, and Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0.

 

What is the Single Nodal Agency model and why was it introduced? 

Since FY22, the government has been implementing the Single Nodal Agency (SNA) model to ensure just-in-time release of scheme funds to states based on the pace of expenditure. The model is aimed at enhancing visibility and transparency in fund flows to states under centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) and facilitating realistic and transparent budgeting.

 

How much funding is still available to states in the current year? 

Total funds of Rs 68,960 crore are still available to the states for the current financial year under Budget 2026–27 for CSS schemes with an allocation of more than Rs 500 crore.

 

Which schemes account for the highest unspent balances? 

Of the total amount lying in the states’ SNA accounts, the highest amount of Rs 6,730 crore is for the Samagra Shiksha scheme under the Department of School Education and Literacy. The second-highest unutilised amount of Rs 6,352 crore is under Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0, an umbrella ICDS scheme covering Anganwadi Services, Poshan Abhiyan, the Scheme for Adolescent Girls and the National Crèche Scheme. This is followed by Rs 5,371 crore under the Jal Jeevan Mission.

 

How have Budget 2026–27 allocations changed for these schemes? 

All three schemes have seen higher allocations in Budget 2026–27 compared to the revised estimates of FY26. The budgetary allocation for the Jal Jeevan Mission is up 298 per cent to Rs 67,670 crore compared to FY26 revised estimates of Rs 17,000 crore.

 

What is the allocation trend for education and nutrition schemes? 

The allocation for Samagra Shiksha is up 10 per cent to Rs 42,000 crore in the Budget for the next fiscal compared to revised estimates of FY26. For Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan, the Budget allocation for FY27 is also up 10 per cent to Rs 23,100 crore.

 

How much has overall CSS spending increased in the latest Budget? 

The total allocation for all centrally sponsored schemes in Budget 2026–27 has increased by over 30 per cent, from Rs 4,20,798 crore in the revised estimates of FY26 to Rs 5,48,798 crore, Budget documents showed.