(Online Course) Public Administration for IAS Mains Exams
Topic: Plans and Priorities: Process of Plan Formulation at State Levels
The State plans account for about one half of the total outlay of the Government under the Five Year Plans. But the states do not have separate Planning Departments. The Department keeps in touch with the Planning Commission, various Ministers and Departments of the State Government for the preparation of the development plans for the whole state and for coordinating their developmental programmes while formulating the plans. The guidelines of the Planning Commission are usually followed by the Planning departments which are presented before the council of Ministers of the State.
The ARC recommended the setting up of State Planning Boards
for the formulation of Five Year Plans and evaluation of the Plan performance.
These Planning Boards “should have their own Secretariats to help them in the
adequate discharge of these functions. The State Plans largely consist of
investment in the field of agriculture, irrigation, power and social services.
The Plan formulation wing of the State Planning Board should, therefore,
generally complies three sectional units-one for development of agriculture and
allied areas including irrigation; the second to deal with power and also with
industry and transport to the extent to which each state is concerned with these
two latter subjects; and the third for social services. In addition, it would be
necessary to have a strong evaluation unit. This should be the normal
organisational pattern of the State Planning Boards.”
Almost all the State Governments have now set up State Planning Boards. The
position of the Board and its effectiveness in the Planning process varies from
State to State. The Boards of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, West
Bengal, etc. are effective while others are not so effective. Sikkim perhaps is
the only State where the apex body has not been set up. In most of the States,
Chief Minister is the chairman of the Board. In Meghalaya and Tamil Nadu there
are non-official Chairmen nominated by the Government.