M. Thambidurai  

The parliamentary panel on Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) funds has recommended that amounts donated by lawmakers for rehabilitation work after natural disasters be disbursed within two weeks.

Purpose defeated

The panel, headed by Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha M. Thambidurai, on Tuesday observed that funds allocated for the purpose by the MPs often reach the affected people too late to help.

Currently, the actual transfer takes anything from six months to over a year because of red tape. Funds are to be released by the nodal district of the lawmaker concerned to the district authority of the affected district.

“The aid has to reach at the earliest or otherwise it loses its significance. We have told the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation that the funds given by an MP from his MPLAD for any disaster should reach the affected people in two weeks,” Mr. Thambidurai told The Hindu .

An Member of Parliament gets Rs. 5 crore a year to spend on local area development.

Member of Parliaments were allowed to spend the money outside their constituency and their State in case of Rajya Sabha MPs — after the 1999 super cyclone in Odisha.