Tamil Nadu government to implement PFMS in rural development

Chennai: In an effort aimed at monitoring fund flow to beneficiaries of various government welfare schemes, the Tamil Nadu government on Monday has announced plans to implement the Public Finance Management System (PFMS) in rural development and Panchayat raj institutions across the State.

“The move will ensure transparency and facilitate monitoring of funds flow. With blessings of late Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami has ordered the implementation of PFMS from this year,” State Municipal Administration, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister S.P. Velumani said on Monday.

Winding up the debate on the demand for grants for his department, Mr Velumani announced that integrated office complexes for rural development department would be constructed for Tiruvallur, Tiruvannamalai, Kancheepuram, Tiruvarur and Sivaganga districts at a total cost of  '32.50 crore.

Mr Velumani who holds the Implementation of Special Programme portfolio under which the free laptop scheme for school and college students is implemented by the government, said the government has targetted to distribute laptops to 5.43 lakh students in 2017-18 fiscal, at a cost of Rs. 758 crore. Through this populist scheme, the state government had distributed laptops to over 37 lakh students from 2011-12 to 2016-17, at a total cost of about Rs. 5,500 crore.

Also, he announced a slew of schemes, including integrated drinking water projects for various parts of the state. The Minister said 11 municipal corporations and 93 municipalities in the state have already been announced “open defecation free” and another corporation besides 31 municipalities will be added to the list by October this year.