KOCHI: Acute fiscal stress is building in the Kochi corporation which is preparing to present the budget for 2022-23. It is learnt that the local body authorities may cut down division funds, which has never happened in the history of the local body.
Division funds are allotted to the councillors for taking up various works in their divisions. It is like the MP funds or MLA funds. The division fund for a councillor during 2021-22 was Rs 1 crore.
The proposal to cut the fundings for divisions is expected to be made in the budget for 2022-23 which is to be presented soon.
“We are going through difficult times. We may have to reduce the division funds for the next fiscal,” a top source with the corporation said.
Opposition leader of the council Antony Kureethra said the move by the corporation authorities exposed the depth of the financial crisis faced by the civic body.
“The ruling front should have taken measures to enhance revenue generation. They have failed in it,” Kureethra said.
“So far as I understand, they are planning to scrap the division fund altogether. This will cripple the development activities in all the divisions,” Kureethra said.
Though Rs 1 crore was allocated to each division for 2021-22 fiscal, the local body authorities have disbursed only less than 30% of the funds so far.
“Making use of the Covid situation and subsequent difficulties in carrying out works, they didn’t give approval for many of the division works. Moreover, they introduced a new clause for granting permission for such works. As per those norms, the project will have to be vetted by the standing committees more than once. This has delayed project implementation and helped the corporation authorities to spend the minimum amount,” said Henry Austin, councillor.
In the budget for 2021-22 fiscal, the corporation authorities had earmarked Rs 30 crore for completing the work on the new office building of the local body. Around 80% of the work on the civil structure of the main office building, which was started during 2005-06 period, has been completed so far. According to the corporation authorities it will require around Rs 43 crore more to complete the construction.
This means that they will have to mop us Rs 13 crore besides the budgetary allocation of Rs 30 crore. In the 2021-22 budget, it was promised that next budget will be presented at the new office.
In fact, the authorities are still unable to mobilise Rs 30 crore which they earmarked in the 2021-22 budget, let along the remaining Rs 13 crore required for completing the construction.
In the last budget, the corporation authorities had envisaged plans to generate an additional revenue of Rs 75 crore in the 2021-22 fiscal. But figures show that revenue generation dipped rather than registering any improvement.
