NMC demands Rs491cr from govt for completed projects
Nagpur: The
Nagpur Municipal Corporation
(NMC) has again urged the state govt to release Rs491.90 crore in pending funds meant for civic development, accusing it of withholding sanctioned money even after several projects were completed. Despite approval of Rs708.09 crore since 2023, the civic body received only Rs296.11 crore to date, including a fresh tranche of Rs27.89 crore confirmed by the district collectorate on Friday.
In its latest communication, the NMC has highlighted that many key projects—ranging from cement roads, drainage lines, hospital upgrades, to e-libraries and research centres—were either completed or are nearing completion, but payments have not kept pace. Officials warn that the lack of funds is crippling the civic body's ability to pay contractors and resume work on halted projects.
A senior civic official, privy to the developments, said, "We have been following up repeatedly. The govt releases funds selectively and in instalments, causing major disruption in our planned works."
North Nagpur—represented by Congress leader Nitin Raut for two consecutive terms—has not been allocated any funds from the sanctioned packages since 2023. This glaring omission has sparked allegations of political bias in the disbursal of development funds, especially as allocations have flowed more freely in constituencies held by the BJP, including former deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis's stronghold in South-West Nagpur.
In East Nagpur alone, projects worth over Rs318 crore were sanctioned, but only Rs58.75 crore released. Completed works, including a Rs5 crore package sanctioned in March 2023 and a Rs10 crore set of works from August 2023, remain unpaid. Similar delays are evident across South, Central, West, and South-West Nagpur, where multiple crore-worth projects await dues even as tenders are executed and works progress.
A Rs40 crore allocation for Swargiya Prabhakar Datke Hospital and an e-library in Central Nagpur has seen only Rs10.96 crore disbursed. Likewise, a Rs26.40 crore research centre in Shankar Nagar, announced just before the 2024 assembly elections, has only received Rs7.29 crore.
Adding to this, a special city fund of Rs20 crore allocated in August 2024 has seen a dismal release of just Rs2.98 crore. In Kamptee's Hudkeshwar and Narsala, out of the Rs15 crore sanctioned in October 2024, disbursal remains negligible. Interestingly, the work was sanctioned days before the state assembly elections.
With civic elections on the horizon, the NMC's sharpened tone signals growing frustration and mounting public pressure. The continued delay in funding is now not just an administrative concern but a political flashpoint, with allegations of selective approvals and unequal treatment gaining ground.
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