Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) (Finance) Manish Rastogi has declined to accept the minutes of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav’s meeting on operation and maintenance of the rural Nal Jal scheme.
At a meeting with the Chief Secretary, Anurag Jain, Rastogi said he did not take these minutes into consideration. Afterwards, the policy of the Nal Jal Yojna got stuck.
Yadav held a meeting with the officials on the policy of operation and maintenance of the rural Nal Jal Yojna on August 21 last year. In the meeting, it was decided that the rural Nal Jal Yojna policy prepared by the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) for operation, maintenance, and management should be carried out for three years.
The Additional Chief Secretary of the Panchayat and Rural Development Department, Deepali Rastogi, also disagreed with the decisions taken at the meeting.
The CM’s Secretariat issued the decisions of the meeting with the Chief Minister. But the Finance Department objected to it. A meeting on the policy, presided over by Jain, was recently held. At the meeting, Rastogi clearly said no decision was taken in the presence of the Chief Minister.
The minutes were presented before him, but he said he disagreed with the minutes.
Rastogi said that he would not give any funds to the PHED for operation and maintenance and that he would give funds to the Panchayat and Rural Development Department.
Jain told the ACS of the Panchayat and Rural Development Department, Deepali Rastogi, and the Principal Secretary of the PHED, P. Narhari, to prepare the operation and maintenance policy afresh, which would be presented to the Chief Minister.
After completing the Nal Jal scheme in the rural areas, PHED hands over the work to the Panchayat and Rural Development Department.
As the process has been going on for a long time, there have been complaints about the non-reaching of water.
The PHED made the policy for operation and maintenance so that water reaches every house without any hassle.
There was an agreement over the issue between Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Prahlad Patel and the minister for PHED Sampatiya Uikey at the meeting in the presence of the Chief Minister.
After the refusal by the ACS (Finance) and ACS Panchayat and Rural Development Department, fresh efforts will be made to make the policies.
Now, decision is in CM’s court, says Uike
Minister for the Public Health Engineering Department Sampatiya Uikey has said it was decided at the meeting on August 21 in the presence of the Chief Minister Mohan Yadav that PHED would do maintenance and operation of the completed Nal Jal Scheme.
But it could not be put up before the cabinet, she said, adding that since the Panchayat and the Rural Development Department was not able to maintain the work, it was decided to hand it over to PHED.
But if the officers do not agree with the policy, the Chief Minister will take a decision, he said.
