Montek meets Chidambaram on pruning of Centrally Sponsored Schemes

New Delhi, Dec 29 (UNI) As part of the pre- Budget exercise, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia today met Finance Minister P Chidambaram on pruning Centrally Sponsored Schemes which have outlived their utility.

''We have agreed to restructure Centrally Sponsored Schemes to make the exercise more meaningful. The idea is to curtail the subsidy bill and carry out expenditure control,'' Dr Ahluwalia said emerging after meeting Mr Chidambaram in his North Block office He said such meetings were 'normal' in the run up to the Budget and said he will meet Mr Chidambaram again next month.

Pruning of Centrally Sponsored Schemes is likely to meet with stiff resistance from the states and experts say that the issue will have to be handled with dexterity by the two leaders. They said the matter may finally go to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

An Expert Group set up by the Planning Commission had suggested terminating 130 Centrally Sponsored Schemes that entailed a gross expenditure of Rs 8,432.81 crores in the current fiscal. It had recommended retaining just 25 schemes that accounted for 88.29 per cent of the total CSS outlay of Rs 71,996.78 crores in 2006-07.

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