Fly on the Wall
Modi drawing a leaf out of Musk's book, Really !
Is Prime Minister Modi drawing a leaf out of US billionaire Elon Musk's book who has been tasked with trimming the size of the US government by Donald Trump. Certainly not! Ever since Modi came to power in 2014, he has been keen to trim the size of the Central Government and cut wasteful expenditure. He did not fill vacancies in the government for a long time and took some drastic steps to discipline the bureaucracy as well which sent the right signals. It is not that his predecessors did not focus on this aspect. The official data reveals that in 2012, the central government employed 8.5% of the organized workforce, down from 12.4% in 1994. Surely, under Modi the figure must have come down drastically. As per a reply given in Parliament, as of July 1, 2023, there were 48.67 lakh working employees and 67.95 lakh retired central government employees. Modi also did not succumb to the pressures to bring back the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) though some of the BJP ruled state governments reverted to the OPS under political compulsions.
Modi can't brag publicly that he will cut down the size of the government as is being witnessed in the US by President-elect Donald Trump and his team. It's a highly sensitive issue in India where population is massive and rising unemployment has a direct bearing on the stability of any government. The Modi government is dependent on two major allies after the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and taking hard decisions rather quietly. He had set up a task force under the chairmanship of former Infosys CEO SD Shibu Lal in 2021 to implement his 'Karmyogi' vision in the bureaucracy to train the 'Babus' inthe fast changing technological world. He is also encouraging the system of bringing talent on contract basis from the private sector in a big way though it has not been successful. Reason! The bureaucracy is so entrenched in the system that an outsider finds it difficult to survive.
PSUs- A Milking Cow Now
The PM's plan to turn PSUs into profitable ventures has borne fruits after 10 years of strenuous work. The appointment of Mallika Srinivasan who is the first private sector specialist to lead the all powerful Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) in 2021 signaled a new era. Srinivasan was Chairman and Managing Director of Tractors and Farm Equipment (TAFE) Limited, a private sector company. Her leadership at the PESB has been instrumental in enhancing the transparency and efficiency of the selection process for key managerial positions. Modi is so pleased with her work that he extended her tenure for one more year until November 2025 beyond the age limit of 65 years and amended the rules. The PESB's task is to make key appointments of 300 plus PSUs under the Union government and a majority of them were running into huge losses.
The Modi government may have been accused by the Leader of Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, that it is working for capitalists like Ambani and Adani. But Modi has turned a majority of them into profit making companies and not selling them for a song as was the case earlier. The Opposition also charged the Modi government of privatizing 23 PSUs created by his predecessors including the biggest privatization of Air India which was bleeding it for two decades. The government kitty has swelled as shares were off-loaded in tranches at a huge price and earned it dividends too. It's a different matter that the government was unable to meet its disinvestment program in 2023-24 being it an election year. There are reports that the NITI Aayog recommended selling off the eight major public sector fertilizer companies in a gradual manner. But the government delayed it as it is re-opening some closed plants to increase domestic production. The government aims to reduce its reliance on imported fertilizers and make them self-sufficient before selling them. It hopes to cut urea imports by 30% sooner than expected. The fertilizer subsidy has already been reduced from Rs 1,88,894 crore in FY24 to Rs 1,64,000 crore in FY25.
Dual charge Galore Under Modi Govt.
The Modi government has resorted to another method to cut costs. It has started giving not only dual charge but even four departments, companies or even ministries to one bureaucrat or political leader. He is also keeping a large number of companies headless for a long time and giving additional charge to the same bureaucrat who is heading another department. If reports are to be believed, as many as more than three dozen bureaucrats are holding dual or triple charge. This compromises independence of the decision making process. The latest is the case of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) which is a vital body to regulate quality and standards of food items. The chairman's post has been lying vacant for three years after former Commerce Secretary Rita Teotia, a Gujarat cadre IAS officer, retired in November 2021. Now Punya Salila Srivastava, Union Secretary for Health & Family Welfare, is holding the additional charge. There has been utter confusion in the government over who shall be appointed as FSSAI Chairman, a bureaucrat or a scientist. The name of a retired IAS officer was recommended but top authorities wanted a scientist or a domain expert to head the FSSAI. The name of a scientist was also recommended and the ACC was expected to clear it but it did not happen. Before Ms Srivastava, Rajesh Bhushan who was Union Health Secretary was holding the additional charge of FSSAI. Apporva Chandra, another Health Secretary, also headed FSSAI.
