Punjab Finance, Planning, Excise and Taxation Minister Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema on Monday informed the Chairpersons of the district planning committees (DPCs) that the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led Punjab Government has allocated a budget of Rs 13 Crore as Untied Funds of District Planning committees under district specific schemes for the Financial year 2023-24 whereas in FY 2021-22 this budget allocation was Rs. 6 Crore only.
He said this budget would be revised as and if required.Chairing the functioning review meeting of Chairpersons of District Planning Committees here at Punjab Bhawan, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema exhorted the Chairpersons to work proactively for ensuring the rapid development of their districts.
He asked the Chairpersons of DPCs to thoroughly study of the various schemes being run by the government so that they can draft development plans accordingly ensuring judicious utilization of the public money.
Encouraging the Chairpersons to further improve coordination with the Cabinet Ministers, Members of Parliament and MLAs, Mr. Harpal Singh Cheema said that DPCs can contribute significantly in better utilization of their discretionary funds and the funds of their respective departments.
He asked them to draft the development proposals for their districts and send these proposals to the planning department through their Deputy Commissioners so that a strategy can be formulated accordingly. He directed Joint Secretary Planning Mr. Rakesh Kumar to provide all possible assistance to the Chairpersons for the better functioning of the District Planning Committees.
Meanwhile, the Chairpersons of DPCs also shared some of the issues being faced by them. The Finance Minister assured that all their issues would be examined and addressed soon. He said that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led Punjab Government is on the mission of making Rangla Punjab and DPCs should perform their best for realization of this dream.