https://indianmasterminds.com

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Of a UPA Minister Stalling Projects for ‘Speed Money’ Being Shown the Door

Who was the Union Cabinet Minister of Environment and Forests in the UPA government who stalled projects with investment of more than Rs 50,000 crore? There were rumours that a ‘tax’ named after this minister was charged that was called ‘speed money’. Eventually, she was shunted out of that ministry. Was it because of concerns raised by Anil Swarup, who was then heading the Project Monitoring Group (PMG) in the Cabinet Secretariat?
Indian Masterminds Stories

In his new book, No More a Civil Servant, Mr. Anil Swarup has devoted a whole chapter to ‘My Understanding of the Cabinet Secretariat’. He writes about his visits to its office premises in a nondescript corner of the grand Rashtrapati Bhawan and wonders about the needless all-pervading air of secrecy it tries so hard to maintain.

As luck would have it, he himself became a part of this circle, that seemed to be sworn to secrecy as far as any move of the government is concerned, when he became the head of the Project Monitoring Group (PMG) in the Cabinet Secretariat.

Did he adhere to the accepted norms, or didn’t he? Let’s find out.

MINISTER STALLS PROJECTS

Life in the precincts of the Cabinet Secretariat was far from comfortable for Mr. Swarup. Here was a central minister hell bent on stalling all mega projects that came for clearance to her ministry – Environment & Forests – unless ‘speed money’ was paid, ostentatiously for party funds!

The crisis had reached epic proportions as the minister had been sitting on files relating to projects entailing an investment of more than `50,000 crore. There were also rumours that a ‘tax’ named after her was charged. I had sent notes on three different occasions to the Cabinet Secretary requesting him to inform the Prime Minister about this specific case, as such delays were likely to create embarrassment for the government that was already reeling under various scams.”

But to no avail.

MONTEK INTERVENES

And then, a chance came by chance! One day the Cabinet Secretary called to say that Montek Singh Ahluwalia wanted to meet him. “Montek, as he was popularly known, was the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission. Again, the context of the meeting was not revealed, but I was summoned immediately. As I entered his room, he complimented me on the excellent work I was doing at the PMG. In reality, the delays in clearances pertaining to the Ministry of Environment and Forests were beginning to frustrate us.”

When I conveyed my reservations in the meeting, Montek asked for the details. I shared the problems faced with the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the potential fallout. He looked perplexed and enquired, “Have you informed the Prime Minister?” I told him that I had no access to the Prime Minister. He assured me, “Ok, I will have a word with him.””

No sooner had Mr. Swarup returned to his room in the Vigyan Bhavan Annexe that he got a call from the Cabinet Secretary.

He had just finished a long conversation with the Prime Minister. Usually an unflappable person, he appeared a trifle perturbed. “What did you tell Montek?” he questioned. “I told him all that I have been telling you for the past couple of months,” was my response. “Everything?” he was surprised. Then regaining his composure, “No wonder the Prime Minister wanted to know more about it.””

The Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister rang Mr. Swarup up the next day and sought more details, which he promptly sent. The details disclosed that files and decisions were held up in the Ministry of Environment and Forests.

Former Head of Project Monitoring Group (PMG) in the Cabinet Secretariat, Anil Swarup

MINISTER SHUNTED OUT

And then, another chance meeting landed him another opportunity to take up the matter further. This time it was Oscar Fernandez, with whom he had worked when he was the Labour Minister.

I used this opportunity to broach the issue related to delays in clearance by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the associated rumours regarding ‘speed money’ that infamously came to be known by the name of a cabinet minister. It was rumoured that this money was being collected for the party fund. Oscar Fernandez had heard similar rumours. Being close to the ‘family’, I suggested that as the name was dragged into this mess, he should inform the ‘high command’. I do not know what happened after this to trigger the decision, but the concerned minister was shown the door within a week.”

Mr. Swarup quickly points out that this was certainly not on account of the Cabinet Secretary, who did nothing about the notes he had sent him periodically. “I gradually became convinced that the Cabinet Secretariat was reduced to a post office, perhaps worse than that.”

(To be continued…)


Indian Masterminds Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Related Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
NEWS
Karnataka High Court
Karnataka High Court Quashes Criminal Case Against MP Dr. K Sudhakar in ₹4.8 Crore Election Cash Seizure
Bihar Police
Bihar Police Reshuffle Ahead of Assembly Elections: 3 IPS, 148 DSPs Transferred; Ashok Kumar Singh Appointed SP Human Rights Commission
FACT
From Finance Head to CMD: Who Is S Sakthimani, the PESB-Recommended Chief of FACT Limited?
Reserve-Bank-of-India_RBI_resized
RBI Proposes UIN-Based System to Simplify Foreign Offices Setup, Eases Approval Norms
NITI Aayog
NITI Aayog Proposes Presumptive Taxation Scheme for Foreign Investors to Boost Certainty and Ease of Doing Business
Bihar Government-resized-IM
Major IAS Reshuffle in Bihar Ahead of Elections: 7 Officers Transferred; Dr. Chandrashekhar Singh Appointed Secretary to CM Secretariat
bureaucracy news
IRS Chandra Madhav Singh Appointed Deputy Secretary in Consumer Affairs; IPS Shika Goel Takes Over as DG Vigilance & Enforcement in Telangana
IAS Shailja Pandey
Who Is IAS Shailja Pandey? Nainital Officer Joins Rajasthan Cadre After Transfer from Bihar
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Dr G K Goswami IPS
Everything you ever wanted to know about e-murder, e-dacoity and data safety
IFS Ravikant Meena UPSC IFS
Ravikant Meena on IFS Preparation, Optionals, and Life in Forest Service
Siddhartha Saxena UPSC CAPF
How Siddhartha Saxena Cracked UPSC CAPF AIR 326 Against All Odds
ADVERTISEMENT
UPSC Stories
UPSC Chairman Ajay Kumar Live Interaction
From Cut-off Dates to Coaching & Reforms: UPSC Chairman Ajay Kumar Assures Aspirants of Fairness, Transparency & a Future-Ready UPSC | UPSC@100
A Century of Service: The UPSC’s Landmark Year Begins. Chairman Ajay Kumar on UPSC’s Centennial: “Merit,...
Giriraj Parihar MPPSC 2024
From Constable to Deputy Collector: Giriraj Parihar’s 9-Year MPPSC Journey | Farmer’s Son, Brother to Five Sisters
From a jail guard to MPPSC 2024 Rank 8, Giriraj Parihar’s nine-year journey of self-study, hard work,...
Ankit MPPSC 2024 Rank 3
From Village Dreams to Deputy Collector’s Chair: Meet Ankit, MPPSC Rank 3 Hindi Medium Topper
Ankit, a Hindi-medium aspirant from Balaghat, secured Rank 3 in MPPSC 2024 and became Deputy Collector...
Social Media
World Rhino Day India
On World Rhino Day, IFS Officer Parveen Kaswan Shares Rare Insights - India Now Hosts 80% of the World’s One-Horned Rhinos
September 22 Marks Global Call for Rhino Conservation; India Holds 80% of World’s Greater One-Horned...
Parag Madhukar Dhakate
Relentless Rains Wreak Havoc in Dehradun: IFS officer PM Dhakate Warns Citizens Amid Flash Floods
Cloudbursts in Dehradun triggered flash floods. IFS officer Dr. PM Dhakate warned citizens to stay indoors...
Forest Guard Tiger Encounter
Tigers Clash in the Wild as Forest Guards Capture Rare Footage , Retired IFS Mohan Pargaien Posts Viral Video
Retired IFS officer Mohan Pargaien shares viral video of three tigers brawling in Ramnagar, as forest...
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Latest
Karnataka High Court
Karnataka High Court Quashes Criminal Case Against MP Dr. K Sudhakar in ₹4.8 Crore Election Cash Seizure
Bihar Police
Bihar Police Reshuffle Ahead of Assembly Elections: 3 IPS, 148 DSPs Transferred; Ashok Kumar Singh Appointed SP Human Rights Commission
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Dr G K Goswami IPS
IFS Ravikant Meena UPSC IFS
Siddhartha Saxena UPSC CAPF
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT