THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The district panchayat presented a Rs 72.9 lakh surplus budget amidst allegations that Vice President A Shailaja Begum had leaked it to a regional newspaper thereby affecting the sanctity of the budget. The first full budget of the newly elected district panchayat could be presented only on Monday due to delays caused by the election code of conduct.
Congress leader Anand Jayan alleged that the details of the budget with the revenue of Rs 156. 74 crore and expenditure of Rs 156.01 crore has been leaked in an unprecedented manner. President VK Madhu maintained that the news could have been guesswork based on details in the vote on account presented before election.
Some LDF workers claimed that rules did not emphasise that the district panchayat budget should be secret like a state budget. Over Rs 31 crore has been earmarked for the educational sector and Rs 16.9 crore for health. The ‘Sneham’ scheme which has been proposed in the budget plans to extend palliative care services which exist at panchayat levels.
General hospitals and medical colleges will strengthen palliative care hereafter. There will be coordination between medical stores and labs in the project. “Many of our children are being deemed unemployable due to lack of English communicative skills. So every child in government schools will get special communicative skill development classes. Further early preparation camps will be organised for Civil Services and Entrance examinations,” District Panchayat President V.K. Madhu told reporters afterwards.
