The Government said today that eight State governments have merged their District Rural Development Agencies (DRDA) with Zila Parishad or Zila Panchayat (ZP) or Others Bodies. These are Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Manipur, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Assam and UT Administration of Jammu & Kashmir. In a written reply in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Rural Development Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti said, the Government discontinued the DRDA Scheme with effect from the 1st of April last year and the decision has been communicated to States and UTs. She said the Government has requested the State to merge the DRDAs with the Zila Parishad and Zila Panchayats of the States and UTs. <br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">The Minister said, where there are no ZPs like in North Eastern States, the DRDA may be merged with District Councils or any other body, as may be decided by the State Government. She said, Staff working at the DRDAs on deputation basis can be absorbed back in their parent departments and the support staff who are on the rolls of the DRDAs may be absorbed, by the appropriate line departments, in the District Planning and Monitoring Body as per their qualification. In case such fitment is not possible, they can be placed with other schemes as per their competencies and qualifications in suitable capacities. The accounts of funds released under DRDA scheme to be audited and the balance or unutilised amount with DRDAs as on 31.03.2022 reflected in Audit Reports, may be transferred to Zila Panchayats or Zila Council or any other body.</span><br />