The Planning Organization of the State is the major component of Secretariat Economic Services. The
Planning Organisation is the machinery which is responsible for the formulation of the Five Year Plans, Annual Plans and all allied matters in the State. The Organisation
also function as a liaison body between the Planning
Commission and the State Government on all matters
relating to Planning and development for the State
of Meghalaya.
As per Rules of Executive
Business of the Govt. of Meghalaya, the role and
function of the state Planning Department is as
reproduced below :
-
The Planning Department shall be
responsible for over all planning, working out a
strategy of development which maximize the
national product through time; laying down the
guidelines for the department regarding the
drawing up of the departmental programme and
schemes and working an economic, administrative
and organisational appraisal of the plans and
programme of various departments.
-
The Planning Department shall be
consulted for advice by other Departments in
matters relating to Plan formulation and the
general principles relating to planning. Provided
that it shall be open to the Planning Department
to prescribe, by general or special order; cases
in which such consultation with it may not be
necessary.
The Planning Department is headed by the Minister
(usually the portfolio is allocated to senior
minister, Deputy C.M or is kept under the charge of
C.M.; presently, the C.M. is the Minster for
Planning). The Minister is assisted by senior
Secretaries such as Additional Chief
Secretary/Principal Secretary,/& Commissioner &
Secretary, followed by Deputy Secretary &/Under
Secretary, Superintendent and Ministerial staffs in
the Secretariat. The officers & staffs of Planning
Department are drawn from various Services such as
IAS, MCS, MSS, MPlS, Meghalaya subordinate services
etc. With regard to decision making process, the
Planning Department follows the procedures laid down
in the Rules of Executive Business and Secretariat
Manual of office procedures. After the matter is
examined and processed by the Assistant (UDAs/LDAs)
the Superintendent suggests action and normally
submits the matters in the concerned file to the
Under Secretary/Deputy Secretary who in turn submits
to the higher authority i.e. Secretary/Commissioner
& Secretary/Principal Secretary being the Head of
Administrative Department. The senior secretaries
generally passes orders for normal cases and for
important matters the file is submitted to the
Minister I/c Planning for decision and approvals.
All policy and important matter requires the
approval of the Minister.
The State Planning Board which is an apex
planning advisory body in the State, form a
part of the Planning Organization. This organization
is also involved in Plan formulation and reviewing
of the implementation of Plan Schemes. At the
district level the District Planning and
Development Councils (DPDC), formulate the
District Plans and also does the monitoring and
reviewing of the developmental activities in the
district. There are other organizations such as MEDC,
Meghalaya resource and employment generation
council, other deliberations and decisions in the
government which are taken on board on requirement
basis while planning the process of development.
These, however are not part of planning machinery.
The Planning Department has the following
branches/offices under its control:-
-
The Planning Administration (in
the Secretariat);
-
The Research Wing (in the
Secretariat)
-
The District Planning
Organisation (in the District headquarter, under
the Deputy Commissioner’s office)
-
Directorate of Economics &
Statistics.
-
The Science & Technology Cell.
The role and function of these
branches are briefly stated below:-
-
The Planning
Administration:
-
This branch deals with all
matters relating to establishment matters
relating to Planning Machinery at Head quarter
and also District Planning offices under its
control.
-
All matters relating to
setting up of State Planning Board, District
Planning and Development Council, Regional
Planning and Development Council, Meghalaya
Economic Development Council and Meghalaya
Resource and Employment Generation Council.
-
Administrative Department of
the Directorate of Economics, Statistics and
Science and Technology Cell
-
The Planning Research
Wing:- This is the Machinery which is
responsible for the co-ordination of all
development activities in the state and which acts
as the coordinating and liaisoning body with the
Government of India and other agencies in the
matter of planning and development.
The Planning Department is the
nodal Department of all development activities in
the state. It acts fully as the State’s Liaison
Department with the Planning Commission, the
Ministry of DONER and the North Eastern Council.
It is also acts partially as the Liaison
Department with Central Government Ministries like
the Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry of
Tribal Affairs, the Ministry of Panchayat Raj
Institution and the Ministry of Finance
(Department of Plan Expenditure). At the State
level, the Planning Department coordinates all
development activities of different Development
Departments comprising of the State Plan, the
Centrally Sponsored & Central Sector Schemes, the
NEC Schemes, the Non-Lapsable Central Pool of
Resources, Externally Aided Projects (EAP),
Central Government Flagship Programmes etc.
The Planning Research Wing has
a service of its own known as – ‘Meghalaya
Planning Service. The Service includes all the
gazetted posts from the level of Assistant
Research Officers above. The posts at different
levels above the entry level are filled up by way
of promotion only through the Departmental
Promotion Committee except in the case of
Research Officers where the entry is made as per
procedure given below :-
-
50 (fifty) percent of the
total posts of Research Officer are filled up by
direct recruitment through the M.P.S.C. The
minimum qualification required is 2nd
Class Master in Economics / Mathematics /
Statistics OR Honours Degree in Economics
/ Mathematics / Statistics with 5 (five) years
experience in Planning/ Statistical works.
-
The remaining 50 percent of
the posts of Research Officers are filled up by
way of promotion from among the Assistant
Research Officers who have completed a minimum
of 3 (three) years service.
-
The posts of Research
Assistants are the feeder posts to the
‘Meghalaya Planning Service’ and all posts
of Assistant Research Officers are filled up by
way of promotion only from this level. Entry to
the posts of Research Assistants is by direct
recruitment through the M.P.S.C. The minimum
qualification required is graduate with
Economics or Mathematics or Statistics.
The Planning Machinery at the
Headquarter has also one post of Computer
Programmer and Data Entry Operator. There are also
Ministerial staffs at the headquarters like UDA,
Typist, Drivers & Peons which are filled up by
staff from the Secretariat Administration
Department.
-
The District Planning
Offices : With a view to strengthen and
improve the performance of the Planning Machinery
at District level. The District Planning Office
has been created in all District under the Deputy
Commissioner’s office and is headed by (1) The
District Planning Officer (DPO) as the Head of
Office, appointed by Personnel Department from
amongst IAS/ Sr. MCS and endorsed by the Planning
Department. There are also Research Officer,
Assistant Research Officer, Research Assistant and
Ministerial staffs appointed by the Planning
Department/ Deputy Commissioner. This office also
services the District Planning and Development
Council (DPDC).
The main duties and function of
District Planning Office are as follows:-
- to convene meetings of the
District Planning Boards at least once in two
months and to pursue the recommendations of such
meetings with the concerned Departments of the
State Government and other agencies;
- to prepare District Annual
Plans for the districts and to place the same
before the District Planning Boards for
consideration before submission to Government;
- to monitor the implementation
of various plan schemes in the districts in
general, to identify the limiting factors in the
implementation of plan schemes and to place the
matter before the District Planning Boards and
State Government with specific suggestions for
ensuring speedy and efficient implementation of
plan schemes;
- to compile and consolidate
quarterly progress reports of district-level
plan schemes hitherto done by the District
Statistical Officers, to place such consolidated
reports before the District Planning Boards for
review and then to finalise the consolidated
quarterly progress reports of such
district-level plan schemes for submission to
Government in the month following each quarter.
Quarterly progress reports may be obtained from
the District Heads of Development Departments,
who may also furnish such other information and
materials as may be necessary for compilation of
the reports;
- to take up such other
activities as may be assigned to them from time
to time by the District Planning Boards or by
the Government;
- to perform all other
functions as assigned to them by Government; and
- to ensure co-ordination among
all the District heads of Development
Departments in the formulation and
implementation of plan schemes.
-
Directorate of Economics
& Statistics :- This is a full fledged
Directorate falling under the administrative
control of the Planning Department. This
Directorate is responsible for all economic and
statistical information in the state. It brings
out statistical handbooks, economic surveys and
estimates etc. The Directorate is headed by a full
time Director. The officers are the members of
‘Meghalaya Economics and Statistics Service’.
Click here to Read
More
-
Science & Technology Cell
:- A Science & Technology Cell is
also
functioning under the control of the Planning
department to guide and support the science and
technology matters in the state.. This coordinates
actions of entities such as The State Council of
Science, Technology and Environment, Science
Centre, and Bio-Resources Development Centre
(BRDC). Click here to Read
More