Bhubaneswar, June 27: The Centre today released Rs 170 crore under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme for the six districts, which are under CBI scanner.

“We received the sanction order today,” commissioner of special projects S.K. Lohani told The Telegraph.

The money had been released for the first instalment, said the senior official in the Orissa panchayati raj department.

The Centre had stopped funding under the rural employment programme in Kalahandi, Nuapada, Balangir, Koraput, Rayagada and Nowarangpur districts following the institution of CBI probe. Incidentally, these districts are located in the backward KBK region. However, the Orissa government had decided to continue implementation of the centrally sponsored programme out of available funds. “We will continue the work with whatever funds available,” said chief secretary Bijay Patnaik.

Last week, the Orissa government had requested the Centre for immediate release of funds for these six districts, so that works could be taken up without affecting livelihood of the rural masses.

In its letter to the rural development ministry, the Orissa government had apprehended that the job seekers would be deprived from wage employment in the six backward districts owing to funds crunch.

The Orissa government might not be able, it was feared, to pay unemployment allowance to the job seekers in the event of its failure to provide wage employment due to want of funds.

Panchayati raj secretary P.K. Jena also met top officials of the Union rural development ministry at New Delhi last week and urged for early release of funds. As per the official figures, an amount of Rs 2,300 crore was sanctioned by the Centre for Orissa for 2011-12. However, only Rs 529.82 crore were released to Orissa in the first instalment.

The Supreme Court, acting on a PIL filed by a Delhi-based NGO, Centre for Environment and Food Security (CEFS), had ordered a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities in the implementation of the scheme. The apex court had taken cognisance into the reports of the CEFS, the Hyderabad-based National Institute for Rural Development (NIRD) and the Comptroller of Auditor General (CAG). The CEFS survey report revealed that central funds to the tune of Rs 500 crore had been siphoned off during 2006-07.

The Orissa government has sent an action taken report to the Union rural development ministry on implementation of the scheme in the six districts, where CBI probe is ordered. In its report, the government stated that on the basis of the NIRD survey report in the six districts, action had been taken against 19 officers while departmental proceeding were initiated against 46 others. An amount of Rs 2.38 lakh has been realised from 29 officers. Similarly, on the basis of the CAG report, departmental actions had been taken against 40 officers and recovery to the tune of Rs 1.77 lakh made from 42 officers, the report said.