DIMAPUR, SEP 11 (NPN): Dimapur District Congress Committee (DDCC) has expressed serious concern over incomplete disclosure of records related to the Palna scheme under Mission Shakti, after examining the social welfare department’s response to a Right to Information query.
In a press release, the committee said several material records it sought had either not been provided or had been supplied only in summary form. It said the documents showed substantial central sanctions for the establishment and operationalisation of Anganwadi-cum-crèches, with specific conditions requiring separate accounts, statements of expenditure, utilisation certificates and records open to audit and inspection.
However, DDCC said the department’s reply largely consisted of sanction orders and consolidated expenditure statements rather than the complete underlying transaction records needed to independently verify how public money was spent.
The committee has also identified several key gaps. On financial transactions, it said consolidated expenditure figures were provided, but complete centre-wise and month-wise bank records, payment vouchers, UTR and PFMS details, cash books, ledgers and supporting documents were not adequately disclosed. For honorariums, DDCC said the department indicated rates and periods of payment to crèche workers and helpers as well as incentives to Anganwadi workers and helpers, yet the full worker-wise and month-wise transaction trail required to reconcile amounts with actual recipients was missing. Regarding rent and grant-in-aid, the committee said sanction documents indicated that rent formed a specific component of Palna funding.
Further, DCC said complete centre-wise details identifying rented centres, landlords, lease agreements, amounts paid, receipts and corresponding bank transactions had not been furnished. On procurement, it said lists of materials intended for various centres were supplied, but these alone did not establish actual procurement or delivery.
Full supplier particulars, quotations or tender records, supply orders, invoices, delivery challans, quantities received, stock-entry records and payment transactions remained undisclosed, it added.
On recruitment, the committee said the department provided numerous communications describing vacancies advertised and filled through written or oral interviews, along with procedures requiring a district-level selection committee.
However, it said complete selection proceedings, candidate-wise marks and evaluation records, committee minutes and other documents establishing the full process were not made available.
DDCC stressed that these observations should not at this stage be construed as allegations of misappropriation against any individual. However, it said they represented legitimate questions arising from the gaps between the information sought and the records provided.
The committee said transparency could best be ensured by placing the complete documentary trail on record. The committee has, therefore, called upon the social welfare department and the responsible minister to furnish all relevant records without further ambiguity, including financial transactions, rent and grant-in-aid payments, procurement and supplier records, stock and receipt documents, recruitment proceedings, inspection reports and audit or utilisation records.
It asserted that public welfare schemes intended for children, mothers, Anganwadi beneficiaries and workers must be administered with the highest degree of transparency and accountability.
The committee expressed hope that the department and the minister would respond positively and facilitate complete disclosure. Failing which, DDCC said it would be compelled to pursue all appropriate legal remedies under the RTI Act and other applicable laws, as well as peaceful and democratic means, to secure transparency and accountability in the use of public funds.
Sunday, September 13, 2026