Malda zilla parishad fails to pass budget

Statesman News Service

MALDA, Feb. 27: Due to lack of majority members the Congress leaders in Malda zilla parishad (MZP) are facing difficulty to pass their draft budget focusing its ‘developmental plan’ for 2008-09 just before the panchayat polls likely to be held in May 2008. The Opposition leaders led by the CPI-M here are determined not to support the draft budget raising several questions on it and demanded a fresh draft budget based on their opinion and suggestions. Having failed to pass the draft budget for the second time on 26 February, the sabhadhipati Mr Goutam Chakraborty has planned to call another meeting in the first week of March to pass the budget again. The adamant CPI-M leaders and members of the zilla parishad have sought intervention of the divisional commissioner and informed him about their stand. The copy of the letter to divisional commissioner has been forwarded to the minister for panchayat and rural development, principal secretary, P&RD and the district magistrate and executive official of Malda zilla parishad. The Opposition leader of the MZP Mrs Gouri Tudu, in her letter to the divisional commissioner, said: “We demanded detailed discussion on the draft budget and demanded more allotment in, education, culture, sports, and welfare for women and children, fisheries, food and other sectors.”According to Mrs Tudu, the MZP had allotted 73.69 per cent of the total budget for the PWD but allotted only 0.06 per cent for education. Without discussion the board has changed the original draft budget twice and called a meeting on 26 February. The estimated draft budget prepared by the MZP was enhanced from Rs. 89.59 crore to 128. 59 crore, she said. The district LF convener Mr Jiban Moitra said: “We would not support the budget. We wanted to prepare the budget with the opinion of all members irrespective of different political entities in the interest of the people. But this budget does not reflect the interest of backward people in agriculture based districts whe-re most of the minority Muslim people are lagging behind. Even the draft budget did not consider the interest of the 6 per cent schedule caste people and 12 per cent tribal people.”“The administration should guide the present ruling board not to place a draft budget but to place a ‘vote on account’ maintaining minimum ethics of democracy because the panchayat vote will be held after two months. Though no system of vote on account is mentioned in panchayat Act,” he said.