DEHRADUN: More than two decades after Uttarakhand was created, MLAs from the state's hill constituencies continue to lag behind their counterparts in the plains in spending constituency development funds, according to information obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
Between 2022-23 and June 2026, Uttarakhand MLAs had Rs 1,664 crore available under the MLA Local Area Development Fund. Of this, Rs 1,091.29 crore, or about 66 per cent, was spent, leaving nearly Rs 572.71 crore unutilised.
The data, obtained by RTI activist Nadeem Uddin from the office of the Rural Development Commissioner, shows a clear gap in fund utilisation between hill and plain constituencies.
“The pace of expenditure is not uniform across the state,” Nadeem Uddin told this newspaper. “While MLAs in some constituencies have utilised more than 70 per cent of their funds, spending in several other constituencies remains below 60 per cent.”
The 34 Assembly constituencies in Uttarkashi, Chamoli, Rudraprayag, Tehri Garhwal, Pauri Garhwal, Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat and Pithoragarh had about Rs 807.5 crore available during the period.
By June 2026, MLAs from these hill constituencies had spent nearly Rs 501.07 crore, with an average expenditure of Rs 14.74 crore per legislator and an overall utilisation rate of around 62 per cent.
In comparison, the 20 Assembly constituencies in the plain districts of Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar had about Rs 475 crore available. Their MLAs spent nearly Rs 337.86 crore, recording an average expenditure of Rs 16.88 crore each and a utilisation rate of 71.1 per cent.
“In percentage terms, constituencies in the plains are ahead by around nine percentage points. The data clearly indicates that MLA funds are being spent faster in the plains than in the hills,” Uddin said.
Dehradun and Nainital, which have both hill and plain constituencies, recorded an average expenditure of Rs 15.77 crore per MLA.
The RTI data also showed that Congress MLAs recorded an average fund utilisation rate of 68.4 per cent, compared with 64.4 per cent for BJP MLAs.
Social activist Anoop Nautiyal, founder of Social Development for Communities, said the findings were disappointing in the context of Uttarakhand's formation.
“The fundamental idea behind the creation of Uttarakhand was to ensure that development reached its remote and difficult mountain regions,” Nautiyal said.
“These figures are deeply disappointing. They suggest that public representatives from the hills have not demonstrated the urgency and commitment to development expected in a state created after a prolonged movement and many sacrifices,” he added.
