Uttar Pradesh seems to be fast moving towards being a prosperous state, at least on paper. According to the stock-taking done by the Planning Commission, the state spent at least 80% of the 10th Plan funds on areas like agriculture, energy and education. The 10th Plan allocation for the state was Rs 59,708 crore, of which it spent Rs 47, 241.64 crore.

However, the state has not been able to draw the allocated money under the Rashtriya Sam Vikas Yojana (RSVY) and Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF) programmes, which aim at ensuring equal socio-economic growth in all areas of the state. Twenty one districts of UP are covered under RSVY and only eight of them have completed drawing the money under the programme at the rate of Rs 45 crore for each district. Some 13 districts received just about half of the money. Rs 135 crore is still unutilised.

Thirty four districts of the state are covered under the BRGF scheme, which includes 21 districts covered under RSVY. However, 21 districts are yet to set up district planning committees that are necessary for drawl of funds under BRGF.

The Centre?s report card also states that Uttar Pradesh has spent 107% of the annual Plan money during 2006-07. During 2002-03, the state government had spent 91.28% of the annual Plan funds. The expenditure had gone down during 2003-04 (79.95%) and 2004-05 (87.52%) but it picked up again during 2005-06 and 2006-07 with the spending touching 100.17% and 107.06%, respectively, during the Mulayam Singh regime, which was defeated in the polls by Mayawati?s Bahujan Samaj Party.

The review is part of the UPA?s preparations for the general elections scheduled to be held in 2009. The UPA has started with UP as it is a key state for the Congress-led alliance at the Centre.

Even under the UPA government?s flagship programme, Bharat Nirman, which aims at improving rural infrastructure, UP has managed to cover 490.82 thousand hectares under irrigation against the target of 977.24 thousand hectares to be covered by 2009.

Under the rural electrification programme, the state has covered 26,625 villages of the targeted 40,080 villages.

In 2006-07, UP utilised 75.79% of the funds for implementing the National Rural Employment Guarantee programme, which is being implemented in 22 districts of the state.