Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee yesterday asked various departments to cut down unnecessary expenditure in the backdrop of a dip in revenue generation following the demonetisation, officials said.
The chief minister raised the issue during an administrative review meeting comprising officials of all 53 departments and 19 districts held in a hall within the Town Hall premises.
"Those who are undertaking development projects can go ahead but departments must stop unnecessary expenditure," the chief minister was quoted as saying at the meeting.
Sources said the chief minister spelt out the name of consumer affairs department while explaining how the departments were misusing funds.
"The consumer affairs department spends handsomely on advertising without taking approval from me.... This has to stop," the chief minister was quoted as saying.
Officials feel the chief minister's hint could have also been at cutting down expenditure for melas and festivals by several departments.
"She won't stop programmes like the Mati Utsav in Burdwan, but at the same time several other festivals organised by departments would not be encouraged now," said a source.
According to senior Nabanna officials, a rough estimate suggests that the various festivals and melas cost the state at least Rs 700 crore-1,000 crore every year.
Since coming to power in 2011, the Mamata government has started several melas and utsavs such as the Baul Utsav, Pragati Utsav, Yatra Utsav and Mati Utsav, to name a few.
According to some officials, the chief minister hinted that departments should have a control over the advertising expenditure too.
Senior finance department officials said the move was required to keep development projects going. "We might face a shortfall of Rs 10,000 crore than the estimated revenue generation of more than Rs 50,000 crore if the situation does not change in the last quarter of the ongoing financial year. Till the end of the third quarter, we are facing a shortfall of around Rs 5,500 crore more than what was estimated," said a senior finance department official.
[Via: Telegraph]
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