Centre releases Rs 699 crore grants for rural local bodies in West Bengal

The Centre has released the 15th Finance Commission Grants for the Financial Year 202425 for Rural Local Bodies in West Bengal, which includes the second installment of Untied Grants of Rs 694.4 crore and the withheld portion of the first installment of Untied Grants of Rs 4.9 crore.

According to the Panchayati Raj Ministry, these funds are for the 21 eligible District Panchayats, 326 eligible Block Panchayats and 3,220 eligible Gram Panchayats.

The Ministry said the Untied Grants would be utilised by Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and Rural Local Bodies (RLBs) for location-specific needs under the Twenty-Nine (29) Subjects enshrined in the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution, except for salaries and other establishment costs.

 

The Tied Grants can be used for the basic services of sanitation and maintenance of ODF status, and this should include management and treatment of household waste, human excreta and fecal sludge management in particular and supply of drinking water, rainwater harvesting and water recycling.

The government, through the Ministry of Panchayati Raj and the Ministry of Jal Shakti (Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation), recommends the release of the Fifteenth Finance Commission Grants to States for Rural Local Bodies, which are then released by the Ministry of Finance.

The allocated grants are recommended and released in two installments in a financial year. This financial support helps in improving rural local governance, enhancing accountability, and promoting self-reliance in villages in India.