The Election Commission on Saturday approved allocation of funds for welfare schemes for the new financial year while maintaining that the same could be utilised only after elections.
The move came pursuant to a flood of queries to EC from various Government departments which sought permission to allocate funds under various Government schemes before the closing of the financial year on March 31. The concern was evident as without the necessary finances, the schemes would dry up and ultimately get lapsed.
With the Model Code of Conduct in place, no Ministry was in a position to take a call on this aspect forcing the EC to step in. The poll panel asked the Ministries and concerned governments to “park” funds for necessary projects in the treasury without seeking EC’s no-objection. However, it asked the government agencies to put the utilisation of funds temporarily on hold till elections.
The note written by EC to Cabinet Secretary said, “The Commission is aware that the financial year is ending and there would be a lot of work for which financial approval is to be accorded and for which budget provision has been already provided.”
In view of the fact that a formal go-ahead for the schemes would come only after March 31, the EC said it had “no objection if the amounts earmarked for such works are parked in the suspense account of the ministry/department or parked in a government bank/treasury as the case may be, without waiting for the Commission’s formal no-objection subject to the condition that the implementation of the same is taken up after the election is over.”
The EC, however, made it clear that the procedure approved by it will apply only to those references made to it for seeking no-objection or to matters which are in the process of being referred to it for clearance. It said that in case the budget allocation in such matters is to be distributed to state governments, the ministries or departments can transfer the funds to the states without waiting for EC’s formal no-objection. But the amount should be utilised for actual implementation after the elections.