More funds for non-plan expenditure, BJP slams government, says it will be a waste

The opposition was quick to attack the government over its move to slash plan expenditure. Defending the government, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who presented the vote-on-account, said the funds under non-plan expenditure won’t go “waste”, as being pointed out by the Opposition, but would be used for subsidies, among other things.

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Attacking the government on the vote-on-account, BJP’s Vijender Gupta said the money under non-plan expenditure would go “waste”. “It is a total wasteful expenditure. The government will use much of the funds on wasteful expenditure and Delhi will suffer,” he said.

BJP leader Jagdish Mukhi said that plan expenditure reflected the government’s vision for the city’s infrastructure. “With plan funds decreased, we wonder how would they build the infrastructure they have promised to people,” he said.

Sisodia said the government will use the non-plan funds effectively. In his speech, he said, “During the current financial year, 61 per cent of the plan budget was utilised by February 2015. Accordingly, I propose to reduce the plan size to Rs 15,450 crore, non-plan expenditure to Rs 18,440 crore and centrally sponsored schemes to Rs 900 crore in the revised estimates. In the non-plan expenditure, Rs 4,751 crore is for payment of interest and principal to the government of India. Besides, it includes Rs 2,380 crore as devolution of taxes and Rs 1,291 crore as share of stamps and registration fee and motor vehicles tax to local bodies. Provision of Rs 1,083 crore for the Delhi Transport Corporation to meet its operating deficit towards concessional passes and Rs 351 crore towards water and power subsidy are included in non-plan expenditure.”