Kerala: Much ado about supplementary grants that remain untapped

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The elaborate process of securing supplementary grants, additional funds sought above the budgeted amount, is turning out to be an unnecessary legislative exercise. The Finance Department, in an internal audit, has found that nearly Rs 800 crore secured through Supplementary Demands for Grants during 2015-16 was not put to any use. Scarce resources, as a result, are deployed in the most unproductive manner. It has been found that in a number of cases the actual expenditure (initial plan outlay plus supplementary grants) is less than even the initial outlay.

“This suggests that supplementary funds were demanded when funds for actual plan projects were left underutilized,” a top Finance Department official said. Take for instance the Rs 26.60 crore supplementary grants obtained to compensate KSEB for writing off KWA's electricity charges. None of it was utilised. Or for instance, the Rs 16 crore obtained for campaign against alcoholism. More than Rs 13 crore was surrendered.

Following the audit, the Finance Department has lined up the following sectors under the “Very Poor” category for underutilisation of supplementary grants: agriculture, dairy development, fisheries, rural development, land reforms, public health and sanitation, social welfare, irrigation and flood control, general education. These are sectors that had demanded substantial amount as supplementary grants when even the initial outlay is not utilized fully for at least two years.

In the “Poor” category there are mining, road transport, water transport, ecology and environment, civil supplies, cooperation, transport and communications and scientific research. These are sectors whose actual expenditure exceeds initial outlay but is less than the total plan outlay by 15 percent for at least two years. During 2015-16, supplementary provisions aggregating Rs 781.10 crore, obtained in 20 grants and appropriations, proved unnecessary as the expenditure did not come up to the level of even the original provisions. “From now on, the department will ensure the utilisation of budget allocation while processing the request of departmental officers for Supplementary Demands for Grants to avoid needless freezing of funds,” a top department official said.