Latest news with #T.V.Somanathan
Time of India
02-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
From November 1, funds for all central schemes to come via 'Sparsh'
Fresh nudge Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The Finance Ministry has directed all departments and state governments to adopt the Single Nodal Agency (SNA) 'Sparsh' funds release system for all Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) by October 31 this year. This means funds for all CSS will be released only through this system after November 1. The ministry sent a letter to all the concerned departments, states, and Union Territories (UTs), asking them to take necessary steps to meet the deadline. ET has seen a copy of the letter."From November 1, 2025, onwards, all CSS will be implemented through SNA Sparsh in all states and Union Territories (UTs) with legislature." The letter stated all ministries, government departments, state governments, and UTs with legislature must take necessary steps to adhere to the timelines for onboarding schemes on the SNA Sparsh platform. The move aims to streamline fund flow and improve transparency in scheme implementation and optimal utilization of funds. For FY2026, the Centre has budgeted ₹5.41 lakh crore for CSS, which is about 50% of the total capital expenditure outlay for the current financial is a "just-in-time" funds release system introduced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in June 2022 for simplified payment and reconciliation for CSS. The system has helped consolidate unspent balances parked in more than 1.5 million bank accounts of implementing agencies across India into 4,500 bank accounts of the SNA, bringing greater transparency, which has saved the government over ₹11,000 crore since FY2023. Most large flagship schemes are already routed through this system; however, many small schemes are yet to be the schemes yet to be included on SNA are: Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna (Urban 2.0), National Urban Livelihood Mission, SMART-PDS, Mission VATSALYA, Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihood Mission, Ayush Mission, Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan, National Mission for a Green India, National Rural Health Mission, irrigation census, E-bus seva, Vibrant Villages Programme, National Mission on Natural Farming, and National Urban Digital Mission (NUDM).On May 29, Cabinet Secretary T.V. Somanathan, in his review meeting of the centrally sponsored schemes, underscored the point once again, officials said. "There was a clear instruction from the Cabinet Secretary (T.V. Somanathan) that all central funds must flow via CSS from April 1, 2026, for greater accountability and transparency of fund usage," a senior official told budget for FY2026 contained a new statement that revealed fund balances under SNA accounts with states and UTs regarding select CSS of ₹500 crore and above. "Now this has to be expanded to all small and large schemes we were able to track, and nudge the agencies to utilize the fund," the official said. The Controller General of Accounts (CGA) is already working with the department and states for a smooth transition.
Mint
29-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Centre starts review of schemes ahead of fresh roll-out in April 2026
New Delhi: The Union government on Thursday kicked off a massive exercise to review the schemes it is funding for a fresh roll-out from April next year, said an official statement. The review covers central sector schemes (CSs), which are fully financed by the central government, as well as centrally sponsored ones (CSSs), which are financed by both central and state governments at a pre-defined ratio. Cabinet secretary T.V. Somanathan chaired the review meeting organized by the expenditure department in the finance ministry which was attended by top officials across the government. The review enables the government to avoid overlap of schemes and better target financial resources to eligible beneficiaries. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emphasized that the poor, farmers, the youth and women are central to government welfare initiatives. The policy of evaluation of ongoing schemes and having a sunset date for each scheme was articulated by the government in the Union Budget of 2016. It stated that in order to improve the quality of public expenditure, every scheme will have a sunset date and an outcome review. Later, the schemes have been aligned with the Finance Commission cycles and their continuation is based on the evaluation of each scheme by a third party. During the meeting, the Cabinet Secretary emphasized the rigour of the evaluation process and urged the secretaries of various departments to use its recommendations to recalibrate the design, architecture of the scheme, remove redundancies and ineffective suboptimal interventions, merge schemes and close schemes which have either outlived their utility or have fulfilled their objectives. This will enable optimum deployment of scarce public resources, the statement said. The Finance Commissions decide on the sharing of the central government's divisible pool of tax revenue with states. At present, the Sixteenth Finance Commission led by economist Arvind Panagariya is working on recommendations for tax revenue sharing between central and state governments for the five-year period starting April 2026. The Department of Expenditure provided an overview of the availability of financial resources at the meeting. Secretaries were informed about the norms likely to be used for deciding the resources available to each of the department for their schemes over the next five-year cycle. There are 54 centrally sponsored schemes and 260 central sector schemes which have their terminal date of approval till 31 March and are likely to be submitted to re-appraisal. A majority of these will also require fresh approval of the Cabinet, the statement said. The Department of Expenditure stressed the quality and effectiveness of public expenditure and, in this context, said that such exercises in the past had allowed the central government to enhance its capital expenditure substantially which now stands at ₹ 11.21 trillion for FY26 as per budget estimates. The meeting also discussed universal Aadhaar-based Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), convergence of various schemes for having a greater impact, eliminating duplication and attaching conditionalities to drive reforms. The implementation of 'just in time release of funds' and avoiding parking of funds with implementing agencies long before funds are needed for utilization was also emphasized at the meeting. This will enable deployment of the savings thus accrued for new schemes or expansion of ongoing schemes, the statement said.
The Hindu
17-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
IWT to remain suspended until Pakistan abjures support for cross-border terror: Jal Shakti ministry
The Indus Waters Treaty will remain suspended "until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism", the Union Jal Shakti Ministry has conveyed to the Cabinet Secretary. In its monthly report to Cabinet Secretary T.V. Somanathan on Tuesday, Debashree Mukherjee – Secretary in the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation under the Ministry – said the government announced that the treaty would be held in "abeyance" with immediate effect in the aftermath of the "Pakistan-sponsored" terror attack on civilians in Pahalgam. "The key water-sharing treaty will remain suspended until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism," Mr. Mukherjee said in her report. Brokered by the World Bank in 1960, the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) governed the distribution and use of the Indus river and its tributaries between India and Pakistan. According to sources, Pakistan's Water Resources Secretary Syed Ali Murtaza had expressed his government's readiness to discuss specific objections raised by New Delhi. However, the Indian government remains firm on its decision to hold the accord in abeyance. The river system comprises the Indus – the main river – and its tributaries. The Ravi, Beas and the Sutlej are collectively referred to as the eastern rivers while the Indus, Jhelum and the Chenab are known as the western rivers. Water from this river system is crucial for both India and Pakistan.
