BHUBANESWAR: Focused push for development of rural infrastructure notwithstanding, only 6 per cent of the allocation made for the ambitious ‘Bikashita Gaon Bikashita Odisha’ scheme has been spent in the last fiscal. Several projects are still awaiting government approval, although nearly half of the current financial year has already passed.
The scheme, announced as a replacement of the previous BJD government’s ‘Ama Odisha Nabin Odisha’ initiative, was launched with an outlay of Rs 5,000 crore to address the critical gaps in rural development through sustainable projects and promote inclusive growth, besides contributing to the broader objective of a developed Odisha.
Data obtained from the Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water department revealed that, of the Rs 1,000 crore allocated under the programme in 2024-25, an expenditure of only Rs 60.78 crore has been made so far. The government has made a budgetary provision of Rs 2,000 crore this fiscal.
Almost half of the 30 districts, including Bhadrak, Jharsuguda, Nayagarh, Jagatsinghpur, Boudh, Cuttack, Nabarangpur, Sonepur, Deogarh, Balangir, Khurda, Kendrapara, Jajpur and Kandhamal have spent less than Rs 1 crore each.
Sources said the highest Rs 90.74 crore was allocated to Mayurbhanj, followed by Rs 67.03 crore to Ganjam, Rs 54.17 crore to Keonjhar, Rs 52.85 crore to Sundargarh, Rs 52.09 crore to Balasore and Rs 45.84 crore to Cuttack.
However, the expenditure figures tell a different story. Bigger districts like Mayurbhanj, Ganjam, Sundargarh, Sambalpur and Balasore have spent Rs 7.15 crore, Rs 1.08 crore, Rs 6.49 crore, Rs 3.08 crore and Rs 3.99 crore, respectively. The picture is even bleaker in some districts like Bhadrak, which has managed to spend only Rs 11 lakh and Nayagarh utilised Rs 14 lakh, while Cuttack and Khurda, relatively resource-rich districts, could spend only Rs 57 lakh and Rs 63 lakh in the last fiscal.
Sources attributed the sluggish fund utilisation primarily to the delayed approval of projects and sanction orders. Under the scheme framework, 60 per cent of projects are to be proposed with the approval of gram sabhas, while the remaining 40 per cent from local MLAs. In many places, however, projects requiring gram sabha consent have stalled, especially in panchayats dominated by Opposition supporters, creating procedural bottlenecks.
The poor pace of expenditure has come as a setback for the state government, which has been aspiring to make Odisha a developed state by 2036, when the state will be celebrating 100 years of statehood.
Secretary of PR&DW Girish SN said that though the scheme was announced last year, it was launched in February this year. “The approved projects are being expedited for completion. The target has been set to get the approvals and complete the projects in mission mode,” he said.