A thorough redeployment of excess staff from the government Secretariat, line departments and other agencies to local bodies and merger of public sector undertakings and welfare boards of similar nature form part of the recommendations for rationalising government expenditure.
The recommendation on redeployment by an expert committee led by Centre for Development Studies director Sunil Mani assumes significance considering the pivotal role being played by local bodies in COVID-19 containment and creative interventions in key sectors, including health and education.
Kerala is one State that has done path-breaking experiments in decentralised planning and developments.
Devolution of work
An interim report submitted to the government says that many functions devolved to the local bodies have been resumed by the Secretariat and district offices without reducing the intake. This should be reviewed and rectified to avoid duplication of work, the report says.
The Secretariat has 554 attender posts and 204 computer assistants. Printing Department has 90 attender posts. The Kerala Books and Publishing Society has 113 posts in different levels and Stationery Department 52. All these are no more required at these offices and hence proposed a redeployment from these as well as other offices.
The committee has proposed a voluntary redeployment, which would give an opportunity to such employees to serve in local bodies in their home and adjacent districts.
Since most of the offices are computerised and is moving towards achieving a 100% target, the posts of typists could be converted to clerks or assistants based on their qualification. A rationalisation and integration exercise needs to be done in government funded agencies such as boards, authorities, societies, and universities.
Review of system
The panel has called for reviewing and rationalising the system of ratio in promotions Secretariat and line departments.
As many as 34 welfare boards with overlapping functional areas catering to the same set of beneficiaries are functioning at present. These boards could be consolidated and merged on the basis of their functional areas to form a Kerala State General Welfare Fund Board.
Integration of PSUs of similar nature such as Malabar Cements and Travancore Cements and SIDCO and KADCO has also been suggested to check wasteful spending.
The committee has also proposed to put a cap on non-Plan expenditure in government offices, except salary and wages, to 75% of the actual expenditure incurred during the previous financial year.