Backward Region Grant Fund (BRGF) in U.P.

Project in Progress

Preparation of District Vision Document (Perspective Plans) for the 11 th Five year plan period and Annual Plan for 2007-2008 for the ten districts covered under Backward Region Grant Fund (BRGF) in U.P. 

The Government of India has introduced Backward Region Grant Fund to readdress regional imbalances in development. The fund will provide financial resources for supplementing and converging existing development inflows into identified districts so as to-

• Bridge critical gaps in local infrastructure and other development requirements that are not being adequately met through existing inflows.
• Strengthen, to this end Panchayates and Municipality level governance with more appropriate capacity building to facilitate participatory Planning, decision making, implementation and monitoring to reflect local felt need.
• Provide professional support to local bodies for planning implementation and monitoring their plans.
• Improve the performance and delivery of critical functions assigned to Panchayates and counter possible efficiency and equity losses on account of inadequate local capacity.

With a view to assisting the districts in the preparation of district plans and facilitate the participatory process, the Planning Commission and Ministry of Panchayati Raj have prepared a panel of Technical Support Institution (TSIs) i.e. National level Institutions and NGOs, for joining hands with the State planning authorities and the District Planning Committee /Zila Parishad . Patnership with the local NGOs and the civil society institution has been considered desirable so that with reference to the baseline study of the district, envisioning exercise can be taken up from the Gram Panchayat level upwards to develop a vision of where the district would like to be on various parameter 10-15 years hence.

Under BRGF scheme, as many as 34 districts have been selected in Uttar Pradesh for preparation of Comprehensive District Plans. As a support unit five Technical Support Institutions have been identified for facilitating the District Planning Process. Among 34, districts in UP ten districts are assigned to PRIA/SSK under this scheme. The SSK has been entrusted to assist the district planning machaniery of the 10 districts namely Banda, Baharich, Balarampur, Ambedakar Nagar, Hamirpur, Shravasti, Sitapur, Sonbhadra, Mirzapur, and Pratagarh. In UP SSK has along with the other Techanical support Instituations

We have been started our sinciour efforts for implementation of this programme under following heads-

• Liaison with the different line department officials involve in this scheme at the state level.
• Developing Coordination with the Other Technical Support Institution working in the Uttar Pradesh.
• Developing rapport with the district level officials and hold discussion with them about the Concept of BRGF and our role in developing Comprehensive district plan.

Collection of secondary date with the co-ordination of the district official has already been started accordingly started assisting the task of collecting preliminary data and liaison with different categories of officers and elected representatives of different districts is in process. Technical Staff is currently camping in different districts and assisting the concerned officials in the preparation of annual plans to be followed by collecting of data through participatory planning methodology the Comprehensive District Plans and annual plans of the 10 districts. It is hoped that the work will gather momentum in due course.

List of District anchors facilitating in ten district of UP.

Team