Opposition MPs question under-utilisation of funds in Delhi at panel meet on MHA

New Delhi: Opposition members in the parliamentary standing committee on home affairs have questioned the under-utilisation of funds and the alleged high rate of crime against women and children in the national capital.

Headed by BJP MP Radha Mohan Das Agrawal, the committee met on Thursday and Friday to examine the demands for grants for 2025-26 of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

According to a source, MPs from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) raised in the meeting the issue of the Nirbhaya Fund being under-utilised and said almost two-thirds of the fund had not been used.

The MHA uses the Nirbhaya Fund to implement projects that make cities safer for women.

The TMC MPs also said the government should give an explanation on the increase in the allocation for border infrastructure and management which has been allocated Rs 5,597.25 crore in this Budget, an increase of Rs 1,840.74 crore from Rs 3,756.51 crore allocated last year.

They alleged that the Census activities were slow and the budgetary allocation for them was also low. They raised concerns about the under-utilisation of funds for modernisation of prisons, central funds for victims of terrorist and communal violence, and funds for the holistic development of islands like Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep.

A Congress MP raised concern over high rates of crime against women and children in the national capital, and the Delhi Police's record on the pendency of cases.

Sources said an MP in the meeting sought the removal of barricades put up at the Singhu border, citing the difficulty it poses to commuters who pass through the area in massive numbers every day. Another MP also supported him.

The barricade was installed to prevent farmers from Haryana from entering Delhi following their protests over a host of issues. However, the agitation has lost its steam but the traffic obstacles remain, the MP noted.

On Thursday, the home secretary made a presentation on the demands for grants of MHA, Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Central Police Organisations (CPOs).

On Friday, the home secretary made presentations on demand for grants for the Delhi Police, Union Territories of Delhi, Puducherry, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Lakshadweep, Chandigarh, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.