The state government, reeling under the huge debt burden which is set to cross Rs9 lakh crore next year, has found a unique way for approving new proposals. Departments that wanted to move a proposal with a financial burden will have to add a scheme that can be wound up or merged with other schemes.
A circular by state chief secretary Sujata Saunik issued on Wednesday has directed the department secretaries to not submit proposals entailing financial burden without the comments by the Finance and Planning Department.
The above directive is significant as on the eve of the state assembly elections held in November last year, a number of proposals, it was said, were introduced before the state cabinet without the nod by the Finance and Planning Department. Reports appeared in media said Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in charge of the department was miffed at the practice and even skipped a few meetings as a mark of protest. It was said that he was particularly unhappy over the manner of introducing the proposals with huge financial burden without consulting his department. His reported tiff with the then Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had become a talking point in the corridors of Mantralaya.
Finally, it is said, Ajit Pawar had his way looking at the circular, said a senior official. The circular has taken reference of a national conference of all the state chief secretaries chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December 2023. The directions given by the PM stressed on effective usage of the available financial resources to achieve rapid growth with merger of the existing schemes and institutions, doing away with freebies and unwanted grants by investing in the productive schemes.
The cabinet proposals to be submitted must include financial provisions for ongoing schemes/programmes, available funds and the borrowings, says the circular. The proposal should also have details of the financial burden expected in future. The proposal should also include usage of technological resources to minimise the expenditure and schemes that can be wound up or merged with others, it also says.
According to the informed sources, the circular underlines the grave financial situation that the state is currently facing. It’s a clear signal for all the departments and the ministers concerned that they should behave in accordance with the precarious financial health. In other words the proposals moved by the departments headed by the Shiv Sena and the NCP may slow down.
