Srinagar, Mar 4: In the current financial year, J&K has received Rs 128.8 crore from the Centre for the upgradation of infrastructure and healthcare for tackling the COVID-19 pandemic, an RTI revealed.
Of this, the J&K government said, 70 percent of funds had been utilised.
An RTI query seeking details of central funding for containment of COVID-19 reveals that in the past two financial years Rs 323.3 crore had been released to J&K.
Of this amount, Rs 194.58 crore had been allocated and released in 2020-21 and Rs 128.82 crore was released in 2021-22.
In addition, in 2019-2020, Rs 29.69 crore was released for J&K and Ladakh together.
The funds have been released as part of the Emergency Response and Health Systems Preparedness Package.
Recently, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said that the Centre had released 50 percent of the funds earmarked for states and union territories and J&K had been allocated Rs 211.04 crore for the current financial year.
The progress is dated January 4, 2022.
Of this, the ministry said Rs 128.8 crore had been released.
However, the ministry said that only 2.44 percent utilisation of this amount had taken place but Additional Chief Secretary VivekBhardwaj said that the figure was not an updated one.
“We have submitted utilisation of 70 percent of the funds to the Centre and have now been given the next installment of funds,” he said.
Bhardwaj said the funds had been utilised to upgrade infrastructure and strengthen manpower in the hospitals.
“We have increased the oxygen capacity in J&K by many hundred times and now have a robust system for intensive care,” he said.
The MoHFW said that the ECRP scheme was aimed to prevent, detect, and respond to the continuing threat posed by COVID-19 and strengthen national health systems for emergency response and preparedness across the country.
Under the scheme, Rs 20,308.70 crore were to be spent by states of which Rs 12,185.70 crore was to be provided by the Centre and Rs 8123 crore to be provided by state governments.
The remaining funds would be released to states based on the progress and utilisation of at least 50 percent of the funds already released.