Reduce Centrally Sponsored Schemes by 50% : ASSOCHAM

New Delhi, June 9 (UNI) The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM) today advocated a 50 per cent reduction in Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) to ensure their timely implementation and avoid cost escalations.

In a communication to the government, ASSOCHAM President Anil K Agarwal said that in the last five decades, not even 40 per cent of the CSS in any of the sectors took off on time and over 80 to 90 per cent cost escalations were noticed in such schemes executed under CSS.

The chamber necessiated evolution of consensus among all states so that the Planning Commission was empowered to create a basket out of significant CSS to finance and allocate funds for social sector projects, identified for all states including union territories.

''The number of CSS have multiplied during the last decade and reached a staggering level of over 200. This proliferation should not only be curbed but curtailed by half so that CSS can take off and do not stumble on account of differences between concerned states and center ministries,'' said Mr Agarwal.

The ASSOCHAM Chief added that the National Development Council (NDC) should take a bold decision to authorise the Planning Commission to ensure execution of infrastructural projects, earmarked for various states in regular consultations with them in areas of power, telecommunications, roads, ports, sea ports and economic zones because these prove crucial sectors for attracting investments from within and outside country.

One third of the plan outlay should be reserved exclusively for the Planning Commission to make allocations to finance such projects without any political and bureaucratic interference, it said.

According to ASSOCHAM, implementation of CSS suffer from various shortcomings as the center has no control over the staff that implements most of these schemes.

The states generally do not keep the central ministries quite well informed about CSS day-to-day progress and also do not evaluate their deliveries to the agencies concerned.

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