Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme
(MPLADS) is a scheme formulated by Government of India
on 23 December 1993 that provides that each member of parliament of India
has the choice to suggest to the Head of the District works to the tune of Rs.5 crore per year, to be taken up in his/her constituency. Initially, this scheme was administered by Ministry of Rural Development. Later, in October 1994, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI) has been looking into its working. Elected Members of Rajya Sabha
representing the whole of the State as they do, may select works for implementation in one or more district(s) as they may choose. Nominated Members of the Lok Sabha
and Rajya Sabha may also select works for implementation in one or more districts, anywhere in the country. The allocation per MP per year stands increased to Rs.2 crores from the year 1998-1999 which has been further enhanced to Rs 5 crores from the year 2011.
Since start there have been reports of malpractices in running the scheme and there have been demands to scrap it. In 2006, a scandal was exposed by a TV Channel, that showed MPs taking bribe for handing over project work under the MPLADS. A seven - member committee was set up to probe the matter.
Some new guidelines for MPLADS were announced by MOSPI :-
(1) Projects implemented by government agencies would now be provided 75 per cent of the project cost as the first instalment, while those implemented by non-governmental... Read More