For the second consecutive year, the Delhi government has failed to utilise the funds provided by the Ministry of Minority Affairs for the upliftment of the Muslim community in the Capital.

The yearly grant of Rs 22 crore remains unutilised when Muslims, who constitute 12 per cent of Delhi’s population, have a literacy rate of 66 per cent, according to reports.

In a meeting held between Education Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely and Congress MLA Mateen Ahmed, it was revealed that the funds will now be returned to the Centre.

“We were taking stock of the expenditure. Part of the amount was meant to be used for scholarships awarded by the Education department, but was not done,” said Mateen Ahmed, member of the Minority Board and MLA from Northeast Delhi, which reportedly has 22 per cent of the total Muslim population in Delhi.

“This has happened for the second consecutive time. The year is over now, but we will ensure that the money is utilised next year onwards,” he said.

The government has also decided to make Delhi’s Wakf Board the nodal authority to register the Capital’s madrasas, so that they can receive grants from the Centre under the Madrasa Modernisation Programme.

According to Education department officials, while the programme was advertised well, there have been no applications so far because of the absence of a nodal authority.

“Madrasas that have been in existence for three years will be able to register with the Delhi Wakf Board,” Ahmed said.