Min, Oppn spar over spending on Maharana Pratap circuit

Jaipur: A heated exchange unfolded in the Assembly Tuesday as deputy chief minister and tourism minister Diya Kumari and Opposition leaders clashed over expenditure on the proposed Maharana Pratap Tourist Circuit.Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully questioned the govt over what he described as negligible spending on the project. He pointed out that although Rs 100 crore was announced for the circuit in 2024–25, only Rs 2.83 lakh was spent over the past two years.
"Maharana Pratap has a glorious history. We want proper funds to be spent in his honour. But in two years, only Rs 2 lakh out of Rs 100 crore was spent. Is there any timeline for completion?" Jully asked. Responding to a related query raised by BJP MLA Deepti Kiran Maheshwari, Diya Kumari said the Detailed Project Report (DPR) was already prepared and groundwork began. She defended the pace of progress, saying major heritage projects require proper planning. "If they were so concerned about Maharana Pratap, what did they do in five years? Did they spend even 1 rupee?" she asked, targeting the previous Congress govt. She added that while Rs 100 crore was initially announced, the govt now plans to spend Rs 275.68 crore on the project. "We will make it grand. Even if Rs 1,000 crore needs to be spent to honour Maharana Pratap's legacy, it would still be justified," she said, asserting that her govt does not make half-baked announcements and completes whatever it undertakes. The debate intensified as PCC president Govind Singh Dotasra accused the govt of inefficiency, questioning the low expenditure against budgetary provisions. He said the ministers were "highly incompetent" and raised doubts about the govt's execution capacity. Kumari reiterating that the project would be completed in full and accusing the Opposition of making announcements without delivering results during its tenure. Frequent interruptions during the discussion prompted Speaker Vasudev Devnani to express displeasure. He remarked that once the DPR was prepared, work would naturally commence and advised members not to repeatedly stand up and disrupt proceedings.