Gandhinagar, Mar 7 (PTI) The Centre had granted Rs 1.24 crore for the upkeep of nine wildlife sanctuaries and national parks in Gujarat, the state government told the Legislative Assembly on Monday when a Congress MLA asked about the status of the grants received in the last two years.
However, due to some technical issues, this grant of 2020-21 remained unused as the permission to utilise those funds was granted in September 2021 of the current fiscal, said Gujarat Forest and Environment Minister, Kiritsinh Rana.
During Question Hour, senior Congress MLA Punja Vansh asked the status of the grants received by the state government in the last two years for maintaining wildlife sanctuaries and national parks in Gujarat.
In his written reply, Rana said of the total 23 wildlife sanctuaries and four national parks in Gujarat, the Centre allotted Rs 1.24 crore for six sanctuaries and three national parks, including the Marine National Park on the coast of Jamnagar district, for the financial year 2020-21.
Rana said the Centre did not give any funds for the FY 2021-22.
As of December 2021, Rs 1.24 crore allotted in the previous year remained unused because the order of allotment from the Centre came in the last month of the 2020-21 (fiscal), that is on March 12, 2021.
To utilise that funds in the current fiscal of 2021-22, the Centre gave its written permission on September 29, 2021. Thus, as of December 2021, when the question was asked, the funds were unspent. In his written reply, Rana assured that it will be utilised by the end of the current financial year. PTI PJT NSK NSK
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Source: The Print
