After smooth poll run,Badal’s fund for link roads mortgaged

In 2014-15,the percentage of RDF revenue going towards loan liability will still be a high 69 per cent and the entire outstanding loan of Rs 1,683 crore will be cleared by 2016-17,in the last year of the incumbent government’s tenure.

During the previous Congress government (2002-07),the board had borrowed a total of Rs 500 crore. But its borrowings in the last five years have been at par with its annual income — Rs 400 crore in 2008,Rs 500 crore in 2009,Rs 800 crore in 2010 (Rs 400 crore was finally availed) and Rs 300 crore in 2011.

While raising Rs 300 crore last year for the Rs 400-crore project to create rural roads,dharamshalas,panchayat ghars,canals,drains and street lighting,the minutes of the board meeting read,“All villages in Punjab have been linked with metallic roads. The total length of these roads are 45,000 kilometre. The re-carpeting of this road is undertaken after six years. To undertake this project,it has been decided to raise Rs 300 crore loan. The repayment will be made through the Rural Development Fund. The cash inflow statement for next five years indicates that the board has sufficient funds to repay the loan.”

While as per section 5-A of the Punjab Rural Development Act,1987,the board can borrow to lay roads linking villages with mandis or linking two villages,the Opposition Congress has been alleging that it is also diverted towards CM’s populist sangat darshans.

But the Chief Minister’s office contends the RDF money is used on link roads while that for the sangat darshans mainly comes from government departments. “The respective deputy commissioners sanction the money from various departments,as most of the grants are for development work,” sources in the CMO said.

In the recent past,CM’s sangat darshan have been costing anywhere between Rs 5 crore (thanksgiving tour of Dasuya last month) to Rs 15 crore (when CM visited Lambi in June to thank his voters)..