Bhopal, Apr 27 (PTI) Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Tuesday demanded that funds under the Member of Parliament Local Area Development (MPLAD) scheme be restored for use by parliamentarians to develop medical facilities amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

Singh, a Rajya Sabha MP and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister, wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the demand on Tuesday.

"During the last year, the MPLAD fund was suspended for two years in view of coronavirus outbreak. The MPLAD fund helps the Member of Parliament (MP) in development in their respective areas," he said in the letter.

He added that people are demanding the installation of oxygen concentrators, ventilators, CT scan machines etc as well as availability of Remdesivir injections, and, therefore, the use of MPLAD funds must be restored.

Under the MPLAD scheme, MPs can recommend development programmes involving expenditure of Rs 5 crore every year in their constituencies.

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