NEW DELHI, May 24: Implementation of the Long-Term Action Plan (LTAP) to ameliorate the conditions in the starvation-hit Kalahandi, Bolangir and Koraput (KBK) districts of Orissa has been tardy at the Central Government level, a Parliamentary Committee has observed. "There has been a clear lack of enthusiasm on the part of the Government in this regard. Instead of facilitating the implementation of the plan, it had been entangled in avoidable wrangles," the Rajya Sabha Committee on petitions said in its 106th report.The committee also recommended that the LTAP for the drought-hit KBK districts of western Orissa be treated as a special and separate component of the ninth plan. LTAP is the "most important instrument" for ameliorating the conditions in the KBK region, the committee felt.Though the plan was envisaged to be implemented over a period of seven years, commencing from 1995-96, and proposals were made to release additional funds to the tune of Rs 389.21 crore during the first two years, it wasnot released by the Centre, the report said.As a result, the impetus contemplated for developing KBK areas was not given for two years, it said, adding that now the implementation of the seven-year plan approved by the Centre with a total outlay of Rs 4557.03 crore would either be compressed within five years or would have to be extended for two more years.The committee recommended that efforts towards the implementation of the LTAP be stepped up in such a manner that the targets set for seven years could be achieved within the remaining period of five years.The report said that a committee of secretaries of the Central Government which reviewed the progress of the LTAP in October 1996 had opined that once the zilla parishads became operational, the LTAP, including the additionality of funds, could be taken up."It is not clear as to why the implementation of the plan was made contingent on the operationality of zila parishads," it said. The state government had also asserted that at no point oftime the administrative infrastructure was considered inadequate by the Centre and that the zilla parishads had been in position since February 1997.
