About 90 per cent of the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) fund has not been spent in the minerals-rich regions in the State.
DMF fund to the tune of a whopping Rs 4,075 crore has been collected in the last three years since 2015-16. However, only Rs 389 crore has been spent and the remaining Rs 3,686 could not be utilised. Thus, 90 per cent of the fund remains unspent.
While the fund was totally unutilised in 16 districts, reports said that only six districts witnessed spending of funds between Rs 1 crore and Rs 6 crore.
This was stated during a seminar on occasion of annual function of the magazine ‘Bhumi’ held here on Sunday. Attending the programme, eminent environmentalist Professor Radha Mohan raised doubt on the Government’s purpose of constitution of the DMF. The body is formed as part of strategy so that no one would oppose any mining operation in the area, he remarked.
Notably, the DMF is a trust set up as a nonprofit body in all the districts affected by mining operation to work for the interest and benefit of residents. The trust is funded by the mine owners.