More for ministries that did well

To bring accountability to utilisation of plan expenditure, the Planning Commission has decided that allocation for funds in the financial year 2011-12 to Central government ministries will depend on evaluation of their performance by the Cabinet Secretariat.

To bring accountability to utilisation of plan expenditure, the Planning Commission has decided that allocation for funds in the financial year 2011-12 to Central government ministries will depend on evaluation of their performance by the Cabinet Secretariat.

HT Image

The secretariat in April 2010 had come out with a result framework document (RFD), for each department to set targets they have to achieve. Since then performance evaluation of each Central government department has been done twice.

The evaluation now for the first time, will be a key for ministerial fund allocation, which is likely to increase by 15% as compared to Gross Budgetary Support of R3,74,000 crore for the financial year 2010-11. The plan panel had asked for a 20% increase, but the finance ministry agreed only for 15%.

Plan panel officials said most of the allocation will be towards implementation of Right To Education, which requires an additional R70,000 crore in the next three years and for rural infrastructure schemes such as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

The departments that have not done well on the RFD targets are unlikely to get higher budgetary allocation as compared to last fiscal. “If the departments fail to meet their own targets in RFD how can they be expected to perform better?” said a plan panel official. The departments that have used the funds more efficiently will get higher allocation.

Despite the approach, some sectors high on UPA government’s priority list such as agriculture, rural development and health are expected to get up 20% increase in allocation.

The government is expected to increase allocation for food subsidy from R54,000 crore to over R75,000 crore to work towards implementation of National Food Security law, which is being examined by a high-level committee constituted by the Prime Minister.

The government expects to implement the law in 2011-end.

As 2011-12 is the last financial year in the 11th plan, not many new schemes may be announced. New schemes to promote sports, Rashtriya Khel Abhiyan, and for job guarantee in urban areas is likely to be announced in the budget. In the khel abhiyan scheme, the government will provide funds at village and district-level to develop sports infrastructure.