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Hindustan Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
No comprehensive planning for upgradation of UP roads, says CAG report
Proposals for widening and strengthening of roads were sanctioned in Uttar Pradesh without ensuring availability of free land that resulted in delay in completion of work, stated the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India tabled in the UP Legislative Assembly on Tuesday. CAG report said lack of planning resulted in a delay in completion of work related to road projects in UP. (For Representation) Sharing an example, the report cited Varanasi-Shaktinagar Marg amounting to ₹121.59 crore that got sanctioned in May 2018 without ensuring availability of encumbrance free land. This resulted in a delay in completion of work by more than two years. Widening and strengthening of Manikpur to Dharkundi Ashram via Kalyanpur road in Chitrakoot was sanctioned in May 2018 for ₹40.37 crore. Departmental officers did not ensure the availability of encumbrance free land before sending the proposal as forest clearance was not granted by the forest department, the report said. This resulted in reduction in width of road during execution by 1.54 metres in a stretch of four km against original technical sanction of 5.5 metres, the report stated. The Rule 6 (2) of the Central Road Fund (CRF) Rules 2014 inter alia provides that the proposals shall include only those works where land is available without any encumbrance. The audit, however, noticed violation of the rule in following cases, the report stated. There was no comprehensive planning in the state for upgradation of roads under CRF, however, an annual plan was prepared from 2022-23. No periodical traffic survey was conducted to identify upgradation requirements, the CAG report further said. 'The proposals under CRF were sanctioned by the state in an ad hoc manner without proper identification and prioritisation of roads based on requirement. The department utilised only 35 percent of the allotted budget for execution of works sanctioned under CRF during 2016-17 to 2022-23. There was a difference in the expenditure recorded in the books of accounts,' the report stated. 'The proposals received from public representatives were consolidated and proposed by the department for consideration under CRF instead of selecting the works based on prioritisation,' the report added. No periodical traffic survey was conducted by the divisional officers, due to which identification and prioritisation of roads for upgradation could not be carried out properly. Thus, the department did not have a complete and updated database of roads to facilitate systematic and objective planning for upgradation of works to be undertaken, it said. Hence, the entire process of submission of proposals by divisional officers was performed in absence of proper planning procedure, the report said.
Time of India
04-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Cong meets governor, urges special assembly session
Patna: An 11-member delegation of the Congress, headed by state party president Rajesh Kumar, met governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Wednesday and urged him to convene a special session of the Bihar assembly over the alleged deterioration in the state's law and order situation, citing the recent rape and murder of a dalit girl from Muzaffarpur. "You are requested to invoke Article 175 of the Constitution in light of the deteriorating law and order and misgovernance in Bihar, and convene both houses to deliver a strong message," the Congress delegation demanded through their memorandum submitted to the governor. The Congress delegation also demanded a high-level probe into the incident to punish the guilty, besides providing justice and compensation to the victim's family. They also sought concrete and effective steps to prevent injustices against the dalit community and to ensure their social, economic, and security-related rights. The memorandum stated that currently, 6,799 crimes against SC-ST communities occur annually in Bihar, accounting for 13.16% of the country's total crimes. "The conviction rate for these crimes is only 8.6%, meaning nearly 90% of offenders go unpunished," it alleged. Citing the recent report of the Auditor General of India, the memorandum further raised serious concerns about Bihar's healthcare services and urged the governor to intervene in the matter. Later, Congress workers protested outside the residence of the health minister, Mangal Pandey, over the issue. A delegation of Jan Suraaj, led by its state president Manoj Bharti, also met the governor and handed over a memorandum.
The Hindu
18-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
State's overall revenue receipts remain below expectations yet again
The revenue receipts of the State for 2024-25 remained far below the numbers projected in the budget estimates going by the actual receipts. The government in the budget 2024-25 projected total receipts, revenue receipts and capital receipts, which include borrowings and other liabilities, at ₹2.74 lakh crore. The achievement, however, has been just ₹2.17 lakh crore, over ₹55,000 crore less than the budget estimates, according to the provisional estimates released by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. Among the major contributors to the deficit are Grants-in-Aid and Contributions and State Excise Duties. While the government estimated revenue of ₹25,617 crore through State Excise duties, the actuals at the end of the fiscal were ₹18,605 crore, marking a deficit of ₹7,000 crore. Grants-in-Aid and Contributions received from the Central government were projected at ₹21,636 crore, but the actuals during the fiscal were at ₹7,913 crore. The case was no different in the years 2023-2024 when receipts under the head were ₹9,729 crore against ₹41,259 crore of budget estimates and in 2022-23 when the receipts were ₹13,179 crore against the estimated ₹41,001 crore. Shortfall in the revenue receipts as compared with the budget estimates is not new and has been a recurring feature since the past few years. Total receipts during 2023-24 were pegged at ₹2.59 lakh crore and the actuals were at ₹2.18 lakh crore. The same was the case with the fiscal year 2022-23 when the budget estimates placed the receipts at ₹2.45 lakh crore and the actuals at the end of the year were ₹1.92 lakh crore. Receipts under the head Non Tax Revenue belied expectations over past few years except for 2023-24 when the State registered revenue of ₹23,819 crore under the head against the budget estimates of ₹22,808 crore. The sudden spike in the revenue during that particular fiscal was attributed sale of lands in prime locations and advancing the auctioning of liquor outlets which fetched substantial income ahead of the elections in December 2023.
