With just three working days left in the fiscal, the Kochi Corporation faces the uphill task of spending nearly half of its annual Plan funds.
The dash board maintained by the Local Self-Government department on the plan progress of local government institutions for the 2023-24 fiscal indicates that the Corporation could utilise only ₹44.58 crore, which accounts for 49.17% of its annual allocation. The annual allocation for the Corporation was to the tune of ₹90.66 crore. Interestingly, the civic body is the second highest achiever in the State in terms of utilising Plan funds. The Thiruvananthapuram Corporation topped the list by spending ₹120.49 crore, which is 58.71% of its annual Budget of ₹205.22 crore.
The financial crunch of the State government has hit the local bodies hard. The cash flow from the State government to the local bodies has almost stopped, which has virtually stalled all the development activities in the local bodies across the State, said Antony Kureethara, the leader of the Congress in the Kochi Corporation Council.
