In a post on X, Pawar said compromises are made with the funds of such departments for the political interests of the ruling parties, which is also condemnable.

“When I was the chief minister, I had allocated 9 per cent of the funds for the overall development of tribals in the Maharashtra state budget. Although a certain amount is approved for tribal welfare, this fund is often not spent by the concerned department, which is a tragedy,” the senior politician wrote.

Pawar released a booklet analysing the ‘budgetary provision and expenditure for tribals’ in the 2024-25 state budget. The booklet has been prepared by the Tribal Development Centre of the Yashwantrao Chavan Centre, headed by Pawar.

He said an honest attempt has been made through the booklet to study this in-depth and find out the reasons behind it. PTI MR ARU