Proposal to use MPLAD funds for facilities at stations washed out in Parliament

Just 16 members of Parliament have shown interest in using their MPLAD funds to provide facilities at railway stations, under an ambitious scheme proposed by the railways, the ministry said Wednesday. In reply to a query in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain said the railways has also decided that whatever amount is contributed by MPs, an equal amount will be provided by the national transporter to develop facilities at railway stations.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal in 2017 had appealed to members of Parliament to sponsor benches on railway platforms using MPLADS (Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme) fund. "Many Members of Parliament have expressed their desire to provide public facilities/items like benches at railway stations out of their respective MPLAD Funds. Request for provision of steel benches, as per above scheme, on equal sharing basis, has been received from 16 MPs," he said.

The railways, in fact, has also said that for every bench an MP sponsors at a station in their constituency, it will install another bench at the same station and display MP's name on it as the benefactor. There are a total 790 MPs in both the Houses of Parliament out of which 341 are from the BJP.

(With inputs from agencies.)