New Delhi: The Delhi government on Tuesday announced the proposal to increase MLA Local Area Development (LAD) fund from Rs 4 crore to 10 crore annually.


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On the second day of the Monsoon Session, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said, "The Cabinet has decided to increase the MLA LAD fund from the existing Rs 4 crore to Rs 10 crore in a year. It is a big example of decentralisation of funds and functioning. The Delhi government is the first government to work together with MLAs from different parties for the development work of the constituency."


The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.


Informing the Delhi Assembly about the Cabinet's decision, Sisodia said it was a demand of every legislator to increase the MLA LAD fund.


"The utilisation of MLA LAD funds is at the discretion of legislators and can be used for any purpose or local project," Sisodia said.


Asked about problems faced by legislators in spending funds, Sisodia said the Cabinet has also given power to the Urban Development minister to make minor changes in guidelines meant for the MLA LAD fund.


In Delhi, an MLA currently gets Rs 4 crore in a year to execute various works in his or her constituency. Urban Development Minister Satyendar Jain said the Cabinet's decision will be implemented by this year.


Sisodia said the Cabinet has also approved another proposal to set up a foreign language academy in the national capital, apart from several Indian language academies like Telugu, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Gujarati, among others.


(with PTI inputs)