Redundancy Rap: Telangana to Restructure PSUs, Govt Corpns

Fate of institutions like several language academies to be decided later based on their relevance

HYDERABAD: Keeping in line with its vision of relooking at the present development model, the Telangana government is all set to embark on restructuring of public enterprises and development corporations -- consolidation/merger/abolition -- to make them more accountable and purposeful.

There are close to 90 PSUs that figure in Schedule 9 of the AP Reorganisation Act and a committee comprising representatives from both AP and Telangana states and the Government of India is currently engaged in the task of dividing their assets/liabilities between the two states.

Created over the years, many of the PSUs have either become redundant or “rehabilitation centres” for politically unemployed who are handed out chairmanship of the corporations, more for status than purpose. Quite a few of them actually operate in the same field leading to overlap, or worse, working at cross-purposes.

“One of the aspects Telangana CM Chandrasekhara Rao is keen on is bringing synergy in the functioning of government organisations, particularly those in the developmental sphere. Therefore, it is meaningless to have multiple bodies for the same purpose. Of course, the proposed restructuring will be done with a humane face by ensuring that the employees are productively engaged elsewhere,” an official source told this newspaper.

The manner in which these corporations have been created was in itself bizarre. For example, take backward classes welfare. At the apex level, there exists the AP BC Cooperative Finance Corporation, and then there are at least half a dozen separate federations for various communities that fall under the broad category of backward classes -- washermen, toddy tappers, potters etc.

Even in other areas, such entities exist, like the AP State Police Housing Corporation, AP Housing Board, State Housing Corporation and Rajiv Swagruha Corporation -- all of them broadly dealing with one subject -- development of housing.

The list doesn’t end here, but gets more interesting. We have a Civil Supplies Corporation at the top, followed by AP Foods, Dairy Development Corporation, Meat Development Corporation and a Goat Development Cooperative Federation!

Apart from the PSUs, more than 100 other institutions of varied nature figure in Schedule 10. But, as these institutes are supposed to serve the two states for a year, the Telangana government intends to relook at their relevance once they are divided. That will be Step 2.

For instance, there are separate academies for Urdu, Hindi, Sanskrit and Telugu, apart from the Telugu University. “Should we have separate institutions for each language or could they be brought under one umbrella. Likewise, multiple societies/institutions are working in

the areas of eliminating urban poverty, rural poverty, education & training, environmental protection, to name a few. We would like to examine their relevance and take a decision,” the source said.

It is learnt that the government has decided to utilise the services of a couple of experts to do a complete study of all the existing PSUs and other institutions and make suitable recommendations. Work on this exercise is expected to begin shortly.

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com