X1. GENERAL

73. We would like to make some observations which can be taken into account while
    doing similar exercise in future .
    



1. It is found that most of the proposal from the departments are for lumpsum provisions. This is perhaps inevitable when proposals are formulated at a short notice and where Departments do not have a bank of projects which they can draw from. Plan Committee understands that in the major spending departments, there are plans cells or plan sections and it should be their duty to formulate the proposals for the next plan one year ahead of the end of the current plan period and to aim at creating a bank of projects with all essential details.
   
   
2. Most of the proposals received do not show expenditure on staff component and other items of running expenditure required for the plan period. It should be mandatory that these items should be separately reported. We had a number of proposals for purchase of vehicles, hardwares etc. without any estimate of the number of additional hands required to operate those equipment vehicles, the cost of fuel required for running the vehicles etc.
   
   
3. Even though departments were requested by the Planning Board, particularly to evaluate existing programmes with a view to determining their continuance or not, very few had done it.
   
   
4. There is a tendency for departments to go in for office buildings and Plan Committee has suggested elsewhere in the report that there is advantage in pooling together requirements of more than one department and going for common office buildings. Along with this, the feasibility of inviting private participation for financing construction can also be considered.
   
   
5. In almost all the proposals including those involving substantial capital outlays hardly any department has gone in for an analysis of feasible alternatives. For example many departments have proposals for going in for computerisation and other equipment such as copying machines etc. In such cases, leasing, hire purchase etc. are options for a resource scarce Government and even farming out the function to outside agency can also be considered. For example the national Highway Authority in Delhi does not own or operate copying machines and they provided accommodation in that building to an outside agency to install machines and copies made for the NH are paid for at a negotiated rate. This can apply not only to office equipment but also for vehicles, buildings etc.
   
   
6. Substantial outlays on computerisation has been proposed by many Departments with no cost benefit analysis or the medium or long term savings in manpower costs. Computerisation programmes should be accompanied by a commitment to contain and save manpower costs.
   
   

74. The recommendations of the Plan Committee are shown in Annexure IV.