Thiruvananthapuram: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has denied the allegations that a major chunk of relief funds received by the government following the Ockhi disaster was remaining unspent.
A total of Rs 107 crore was received in the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund following Ockhi and Rs. 111 crore received towards State Disaster Response Fund, totaling Rs 218 crore.
Of this, Rs. 116.79 crore was either spent already or orders to spend issued. Further expenses of Rs. 84.90 crore was expected and hence the total utilisation as of now would be Rs. 201.69 crore.
The Chief Minister further clarified that of the Rs. 107 crore received by the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund, Rs. 65.68 crore was either already spent or orders for spending already issued. This apart, projects worth Rs. 84.90 core were still under government's active consideration, said the Chief Minister.
Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala had alleged that the funds collected for Ockhi disaster were being diverted and the major chunk was remaining unspent.
