The Maharashtra government finally revived the statutory development boards for Marathwada, Vidarbha and the Rest of Maharashtra (RoM) regions. The term of these boards had expired on 30 April 2020. The previous Maha Vikas Aghadi government was criticised by the BJP for not giving an extension to the boards, accusing that the MVA government had abandoned the backward Marathwada and Vidarbha regions. The last time the boards were given a new lease of life was vide an order dated 30 April 2015 and the extension was to expire in five years.
The three statutory development boards came into existence with effect from 1 May 1994 by a Presidential Order. The boards’ principal function was to ascertain the relative levels of development or lack thereof in different sectors in relation to each board’s area, on the basis of specific indicators. They were expected to consider the levels of development in the state as a whole and assess the impact of various development efforts in removing backlog and in achieving overall development within that particular area. To achieve this, the boards were to suggest the levels of development expenditure over the jurisdiction of each board during a plan period and prepare an annual report on its functioning. The report was to reach, within three months after the end of every financial year, to the Governor for placing it before the state legislature. The boards were to function under the supervision of the Governor.
Despite various and persistent demands, the performance of the working of the three boards has not been assessed thoroughly. A Fact Finding Team on Vidharbha was set up on 2 March 2006 by the Planning Commission of India “To study the causes of Regional Disparities and Rural Distress in Maharashtra with particular reference to Vidharbha.”
Experience has established that none of the boards have the infrastructure facilities to identify actual development in their regions on a periodic basis. Neither have they financial provisions to allocate the required funds to clear the accumulated backlog. To overcome this hurdle, the boards in their meetings, by their resolutions and through their annual reports had been submitting to the Governor and the Planning Department in Mantralaya the developmental backwardness, backlog accumulation and regional disparities. These were supplemented by the suggested allocation and expenditure for its clearance.
When the expected development did not occur, Governor had set up the Indicator Committee in 1995 following the request of the development board members. This was a joint committee of experts of the three boards, which were tasked to examine regional development and backwardness as on 1 April 1994. Studying equitable arrangements for technical and vocational training as well as representation of the three regions in employment services was the focus of their activity. By the time the Committee report was accepted in November 2000, the backlog of 1984 was getting implemented. The boards had highlighted the accumulating physical and financial backlog in their annual reports and resolutions in the meetings and brought to the notice of the Governor. They had also highlighted the anomalies and methodological issues involved in the calculation of backlog in various sectors, especially in irrigation sector.
The Rest of Maharashtra development board had pointed out that the irrigation backlog calculated by the Committee was discriminatory towards RoM region and requested the Committee and Governor to consider taluka as a unit for irrigation backlog calculation in DPAP areas. Board for RoM region had also suggested a formula of 40 percent population, 30 percent cultivable area and 30 percent irrigated areas for clearance of backlog in irrigation sector. The irrigation backlog amount assigned to restoration of former Malguzari tanks (Rs. 117 crore) in Vidarbha by the Committee had been suggested by RoM board to be taken as a routine work and not as a backlog work. Vidarbha and Marathwada development boards had brought to the notice of the Governor of the inequitable allocation and expenditure of backlog funds between the three regions during 1994-95 to 2000-01 and the need for compensation for the Vidarbha and Marathwada regions due to excess expenditure incurred in RoM region. As irrigation backlog is accumulating, Vidarbha and Marathwada boards had also suggested a formula for distribution of funds with weightage to backlog, the net sown area and rural population in the ratio of 50:25:25, respectively, for its clearance. They had also requested for flexibility on spending the amount in adjoining districts if funds could not be spent in a particular district for any reason and that the regional boards should be empowered to decide the works in the district.
After nearly three decades, regional developmental imbalances in Maharashtra come to the fore starkly. According to the Economic Survey of Maharashtra 2020-21, the gross per capita value addition in Pune division was Rs.2,24,244. Against this, the figure was Rs.1,31,328 for Aurangabad division, Rs.1,79,464 for Nagpur division and Rs.1,15,752 for Amaravati division. This highlights the disparity among the various administrative divisions. The foreign direct investment (FDI) over the past two decades is mainly concentrated in the Mumbai-Pune belt. Private sector Information Technology (IT) parks are 193 in Pune, 175 in Mumbai, 164 in Thane, 3 in Aurangabad, 5 in Nagpur and none in Amaravati. As a result, employment opportunities in Marathwada and Vidarbha regions are almost non-existent.
In the past, the three boards had powers to expend the funds allocated to them. However, these powers with withdrawn in 2011. Thus, the allocation of Rs.100 crore every year was also scrapped. As a result, the boards have become a haven for academic discussions and for accommodating unwanted politicians on them. Expectedly, the glamour attached to them in the past is no more. Experts, too, have decided to keep away from the boards since nothing worthwhile is achieved by remaining with them.
In the present scenario, just revival of the boards will not suffice. The urgency to assess the backlog all over Maharashtra is the need of the hour since the first and only such exercise happened in 1994. Secondly, the then experts had studied only nine sectors for deciding developmental backlog. At that time, the service and industry sectors were not as important as they are today. They constitute nearly 85 percent of the share in GDP. The only remedy to accelerate overall development of Maharashtra is to constitute an expert committee by keeping away politicians and measure the backlog afresh. Only then it will be possible to reorient the three boards and push them towards achieving their objective.
The development boards have a vast field to change this scenario but how it can be done will depend upon the rulers of Maharashtra.
A Column By
Dilip Chaware – Senior Editor
A media professional for 43 years, with extensive experience of writing on
a variety of subjects; he is also a documentary producer and book author.
