CM’s thrust on review, monitoring of projects start yielding dividends

By Mohinder Verma

JAMMU, Mar 25: Since utilization of liberal financial assistance of thousands of crores of rupees from the Union Government in a most transparent and effective manner and ensuring its benefits to the common masses is a challenging task for his Government, the Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, has attached immense importance to the monitoring exercise for being an invaluable tool of good governance. Instead of confining this exercise at the level of Ministers concerned and Administrative Secretaries of the Departments only, he has put an exclusive mechanism in his own Secretariat where mega projects and schemes are being identified for special and close monitoring after regular intervals.
Authoritative sources told EXCELSIOR that in order to ensure that real objective of liberal financial assistance from the Union Government and various Centrally-Sponsored Schemes is achieved at the ground level, the Chief Minister has flagged much importance to the monitoring exercise, which also improves efficiency and effectiveness of the project or agency executing the same and keep the work on track.
“The thrust on monitoring aspect can be gauged from the fact that on one side the Administrative Secretaries and other Heads of Departments have been made accountable for monitoring of developmental works after regular intervals and on the other side a special cell in the Chief Minister’s own Secretariat has been entrusted with this responsibility”, they said, adding “even the concept of 3rd party monitoring has also been introduced to identify the problem and critical areas and submit reports to the CM’s Secretariat for necessary and prompt action”.
“The monitoring assumes much significance when during the current financial year only an expenditure of ` 2300 crore is being registered under various Centrally sponsored schemes like Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Prime Minister Gramin Sadak Yojana, RGGVY etc”, they said, adding “moreover, it is only through this mechanism that necessary coordination is ensured among different departments, which is imperative for smooth execution of the projects”.
As far as monitoring cell in the Chief Minister’s Secretariat is concerned, sources said, “Mr Omar is regularly identifying the important schemes and projects for close watch of an in-house team constituted by him”, adding “the team is conducting field visits to assess the financial and physical achievement of the projects following which necessary directions are passed to the Administrative Departments for addressing the problem areas and initiating action on the key observations of the team”.
According to the sources, more than 100 works/ project of prime public importance have been identified for close monitoring by the monitoring cell in the Chief Minister’s Secretariat. A total of 66 PMGSY, PMRP, UIDSSMT, RGGY, CRF projects and Centrally Sponsored Schemes have been inspected by the cell so far.
“The Monitoring Cell, which is working under the administrative control of Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, is also ensuring implementation of the directions passed by the Chief Minister during the video-conferencing and announcements made by him during the public meetings”, sources further said, adding “the Chief Minister has also issued clear directions to the cell to closely monitor the implementation of decisions taken in the District Development Board meetings”.
As far as monitoring of State and District Plans is concerned, sources said that in the recent past, Chief Minister identified 50 mega projects under State Plan for close monitoring and progress on the same is being assessed by Omar Abdullah himself so that all these projects are completed within stipulated time-frame.
Though during the current year Chief Minister could not take review meetings of all the District Development Boards in time because of Budget Session yet he will convene the same of rest of the districts soon after the Budget Session, they said, adding it is a wrong notion that review meetings are convened only to sanction additionalities. The main purpose of such meetings is to ensure monitoring of the developmental works.
“It is due to required thrust on the review and monitoring exercise that during the current financial year the District Plan implementation would be to the tune of 95 per cent and State Plan up to 90 per cent”, they said.
Despite multi-tier monitoring mechanism, people have been empowered to bring any shortcoming to the notice of Chief Minister through grievance redressal cell, which has disposed off 14149 complaints out of total 15285 received till date.