RTI activist Vihar Durve has urged govt to establish a time-bound mechanism to recover the amount, particularly when the state was facing financial demands arising from drought relief
Durve, in a letter to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis , women and child development minister, chief secretary and the department’s principal secretary, said the amount was paid between July 2024 and July 2025 despite the beneficiaries being ineligible for the scheme. Because of delayed payments and a shortage of funds for ongoing works, bhosale said contractors were facing difficulties.
“When funds are required, the govt must take this step immediately,” he told TOI . Every rupee wrongly paid from the public exchequer should be recovered,” Durve said in his representation. Maharashtra State Engineers’ Association president Milind Bhosale said the state’s worsening financial position and the drought crisis left contractors, developers and businesses struggling. Bhosale said govt should review its expenditure priorities during the crisis, particularly the continuation of free-distribution schemes, and examine if funds could instead be used for development works and clearing contractors’ dues. Bhosale said the economic impact would extend beyond contractors and developers if the funding crunch continued, as stalled works could affect employment and business activity across sectors.
“The state is facing a severe drought and needs substantial funds for relief measures. Durve proposed a standard operating procedure (SOP) specifying the legal provisions and revenue-recovery mechanism to be used uniformly across the state. He sought monthly recovery reports from the nodal officer to the chief secretary and the chief minister, with details of recovery made public on govt website. The activist also urged govt to fix the responsibility for the failures that resulted in payment to ineligible beneficiaries and ensure that recovery efforts did not affect the eligible women receiving the scheme’s benefits. A mail has been sent to chief minister’s office on this issue. Govt’s inability to take up new projects was adding to the pressure on the sector. He urged govt to take a hard look at its finances for the coming year and ensure that available resources were directed towards essential development and drought-related requirements.