Kochi corp spent only 43% on plan fund projects so far

Kochi: With less than a week to complete the implementation of plan fund projects and submit bills before the district planning committee (DPC), Kochi corporation spent only 43% of the funds for 2025-26 fiscal. But despite the poor performance, Kochi stands second among corporations across the state.Sums allocated as plan fund are used for implementing various projects across different sectors of the corporation, such as infrastructure, development, agriculture and education. Kochi corporation said the main reason for the underperformance was due to bills worth crores pending with the treasury. "It was not cleared because of restrictions imposed by state govt due to the financial crisis. Otherwise, our plan fund expenditure would have been much more," mayor V K Minimol said. "This is an issue faced by all the local bodies across the state. However, we expect that a few more bills will be cleared soon, and our plan fund project expenditure will go up in the coming days. If so, we may be able to surpass Kollam corporation to clinch the first position among the corporations in the state," Minimol added. Besides the curbs on clearing bills of plan fund projects, the unavailability of employees to implement plan fund projects has also affected the progress of such projects. "Several officials associated with plan fund projects are busy with election-related work. As a result, several plan fund projects have been hamstrung," said M G Aristotle, member, finance standing committee, Kochi corporation. Moreover, the health grant to be released by Union govt has also not been allocated. "Last year, Rs 120 crore was earmarked for Kochi corporation. Later, state govt informed that Union govt didn't release the sum. This fiscal, the health fund has not even been earmarked," Aristotle said. In absence of the grant, implementation of projects in the health sector has been affected. "For example, we could have used the funds for setting up wellness clinics in the city," Aristotle said. Of the total 38 wellness clinics proposed in the city, five more centres are yet to be constructed or set up. Each wellness clinic will be manned by a doctor, a staff nurse, a pharmacist, a cleaning staff and a multipurpose worker. Once the wellness clinics are opened, people will get healthcare in their neighbourhoods. Only those who require in-patient services and specialised treatment will have to go to other hospitals.