The Finance Ministry has issued new norms for the appraisal and approval of public-funded schemes as well as to improve the delivery of goods and services to citizens.
“With the announcement in the Union Budget 2016-17 of doing away with Plan Non-Plan distinction at the end of Twelfth Five Year Plan, it is imperative that a plan non-plan neutral appraisal and approval system is put into place,” the Finance Ministry said in a notification.
“It was found that over the years Ministries/Departments had started operating small and multiple schemes, which spread resources too thinly to realise any meaningful outcomes,” according to the notification.
One of the guidelines is that no new scheme or sub-scheme can be initiated without the prior “in-principle” approval of the Department of Expenditure. This will not apply to the announcements made in the Budget Speech for any given year.
The new policy also empowers ministers to approve expenditure proposals of up to Rs 500 crore, up from the previous limit of Rs 150 crore.
“Administrative Ministries/Departments should continuously endeavour to merge, restructure or drop existing schemes and sub-schemes that have become redundant or ineffective with the passage of time,” according to the notification.
