Unused funds with the ministry of rural development has mounted to nearly Rs 10,000 crore, even as the government pours in more for development programmes.
The situation has come to such a pass thanks to the absence of matching grants by the state governments and the lack of proper accounting systems with the District Rural Development Agencies (DRDA), the implementing agencies for development plans at the district level.
According to a sample study made by the rural development ministry in several districts of the country, the extent of diversion of funds from one central scheme to another was about Rs 1,000 crore in 1999-2000.
Besides, there is a