‘Displeased’ PMO tells Ministries: give details of MoUs

In a letter to ministries, Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha has asked them to henceforth furnish details of all MoUs to the Cabinet Secretariat within a month of the signing of MoUs.

Following the letter, the Railway Ministry, which has been on an MoU-signing spree of late, has initiated a process to collect information on all MoUs it has signed.

Secretary Railway Board G R Agarwal, referring to Sinha’s letter and the reference to the PM’s “displeasure”, has asked all directorates to collect MoUs that have been signed by the ministry and its allied organisations. The last date for submission of such information to the Chairman Railway Board’s office is Tuesday, August 25.

“Cabinet Secretary vide his letter dated 14.8.2015 has also communicated the Honourable Prime Minister’s displeasure in delayed submission of such information…,” Agarwal stated in his note to colleagues.

The ministry enters into MoUs with various organisations and entities including other countries. Some of these MoUs have to be placed before the Cabinet post-facto or for information within a time limit. It now turns out that not all such information has been reaching the country’s top office in time.

This year, the Railways has been signing MoUs with different entities — LIC, National Institute of Design, University of Mumbai, Roha Dighi Port, Ministry of Coal, Power, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, New and Renewable Energy and others. It has also signed MoUs with states like Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra for joint ventures and, among other countries, one with the Slovak Republic.