Chhattisgarh gets approval of ₹195 crore from the Centre to strengthen rural connectivity in Naxal-affected areas
Chief Minister Vishnu Dev Sai expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister and the Union Rural Development Ministry, said – this amount will become a strong foundation of development, trust and peace for the deprived areas
Raipur, 7 August 2025: Taking a big step towards strengthening rural connectivity and infrastructure in the Naxal-affected remote and tribal areas of Chhattisgarh, the Government of India has approved central assistance of ₹ 195 crore to Chhattisgarh for the financial year 2025–26 under the road connectivity project “RCPLWEA (Road Connectivity Project for Left Wing Extremism Affected Areas)”. Chief Minister Vishnu Dev Sai expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for this important approval and said that this approval will bring new light of development in those remote areas of Chhattisgarh, which have been struggling with Naxal violence and geographical inaccessibility for decades. This amount will prove to be a strong foundation of development, trust and lasting peace for the people there. Our government will use this fund with complete transparency and quality.
The sanction has been given through the Single Nodal Agency SPARSH model under the “Just-in-Time” fund release system of the Ministry of Finance. The mother sanction has been prepared with the permission of the competent authority and uploaded on PFMS (Public Financial Management System). Out of the total ₹195 crore, ₹190.6125 crore has been sanctioned as programme fund and ₹4.3875 crore as administrative fund, which will be received by the state through Reserve Bank of India. As per SPARSH guidelines, only one active mother sanction will be valid at any point of time, and the previous balance will be absorbed in it. The fund has been given specifically for development of new all-weather roads, strengthening of existing roads, bridge construction and cross-drainage structures in remote rural areas of Left Wing Extremism affected districts of Chhattisgarh—Dantewada, Bijapur, Sukma, Narayanpur, Kanker, Bastar, Rajnandgaon, Balrampur, Kondagaon and Jashpur. These structures will connect settlements to block and district headquarters, markets, schools and health centres, thereby significantly improving governance access and socio-economic activities. This connectivity structure will act as a lifeline, especially in flood-prone and rain-affected areas. Administrative funds of ₹4.3875 crore will be used for Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E), technical support, capacity building, and data management through MIS platform.
This sanction has been adjusted under previously sanctioned projects: ₹56.82 crore under Batch-I (2019-20), ₹133.79 crore under Batch-I (2022-23) has been adjusted. After this adjustment, an amount of ₹217.39 crore for Batch-I (2022-23) will remain for further release. This process includes the previously released amount and interest earned, and ensures compliance with the guidelines of e-bill clearance, revised mother sanction and Single Nodal Agency – Sparsh system. The Ministry of Rural Development has requested the State Government to ensure prompt and effective utilization of funds as per the scheme guidelines. Also, according to the Ministry of Finance’s Office Memorandum dated 13 July 2023 (para 3(v)), it has also been clarified that after completion of the scheme, it will be necessary to close all Single Nodal Agency accounts and return the untested central share to the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI). It will be mandatory to return the untested amount of the state share to the Consolidated Fund of the State and any central share kept in the State Fund to the CFI. This approval has been issued under the powers conferred on the Ministry of Rural Development and after consultation with the Integrated Finance Division. This decision will not only give impetus to the expansion of communication facilities in remote areas of Chhattisgarh but will also prove to be a decisive step towards social harmony, good governance, accessibility of services and permanent peace.
