The Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance has released an amount of Rs 1154.90 crore to four states for providing grants to urban local bodies.
The states which will receive the grants are Andhra Pradesh (Rs 225.60 crore), Bihar (Rs 769 crore), Gujarat (Rs 165.30 crore) and Sikkim (Rs five crore).
The grants released are meant for Non-Million Plus cities (NMPCs) including Cantonment Boards.
The 15th FC has recommended separate grants for them. Out of the total grants recommended by the commission for non-million plus cities, 40 percent is basic (untied) grant and the remaining 60 percent is tied grant.
Basic grants (untied) are utilised for location specific felt needs, except for payment of salary and incurring other establishment expenditure. On the other hand, tied grants for the non-million plus cities are released for supporting and strengthening the delivery of basic services. Out of the total tied grant, 50 percent is earmarked for Sanitation Solid Waste Management and attainment of star ratings as developed by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MOH&UA). The remaining 50 percent is tied to ‘Drinking water, rainwater harvesting and water recycling.
The tied grants are meant to ensure availability of additional funds to urban local bodies over and above the funds allocated by the Centre and the state for sanitation and drinking water under various Centrally sponsored schemes and provide quality services to citizens.