Kerala Misses Out on Rs 1000 Crore Central Fund Under Swachh Bharat Due to Inadequate Waste Management

The Kerala state government’s bid to secure Rs 1000 crore for local bodies under the Swachh Bharat central scheme has faced a setback. The Central government expressed dissatisfaction, citing that local bodies in Kerala spent very little in the previous financial year on initiatives to make the state free from garbage.

The primary objective of the central scheme is to make local bodies waste-free within a year. To garner support for this cause, the state had introduced the ‘Malinya Muktham Navakeralam’ scheme. While the state reported to the Centre that Swachh Bharat was being effectively implemented, the inspection conducted by central representatives revealed a low utilization of the scheme in local bodies across the state. Consequently, the state has lost access to Rs 1000 crore in central funds earmarked for waste management projects.

Key Points:

The Centre mandates that each local body completes at least 90 percent of the waste management plan set for the previous year.

Due to financial challenges in the last year, project implementation progress was sluggish until December.

While momentum picked up by March, the local bodies did not receive the allocation needed to finalize waste management projects.

This development underscores the importance of timely and effective utilization of central funds allocated for critical initiatives like waste management. The state now faces the challenge of addressing the deficiencies identified by the Centre to unlock future funding opportunities under the Swachh Bharat scheme.