• NET Web Desk

Various administrative departments of Assam are yet to submit 57 Utilization Certificates (UCs) amounting to Rs 73.50 Crores to the North Eastern Council (NEC) until January 31, 2022.

According to Ministry of Development of the North Eastern Region (DoNER) statistics, in the last 17 years, the NEC has disbursed Rs 1278.94 Crores to Assam for covering various developmental initiatives in the state. The NEC fund was used by the state government for Rs 1166.42 crore.

However, the State Government is yet to submit 57 UCs totaling Rs 73.50 crore, despite having received Rs 112.52 crore.

Its worthy to note that NEC provides funding for the development of the eight northeastern states as well as a few other organizations. It is yet to receive 310 UCs costing Rs 454.38 crore from the eight northeastern states and other bodies.

When asked about the pending UCs for the NEC fund, a source in the T&D Department said, “The submission of UCs to the NEC was quite dismal earlier. However, the situation improved to a great extent last year. When we ask various departments implementing NEC projects to submit UCs, they seldom respond. Despite that, we keep putting pressure on the departments to submit UCs.”