Finance secretary T V Somanathan and division of funding and public asset administration (Dipam) secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey have been a part of the Price range workforce since they took over prime positions and will nicely have two full Budgets to take care of in July and Feb 2025.That is as a result of the Narendra Modi authorities has opted to put up officers with lengthy tenures within the finance ministry, which doesn’t have fastened two-year phrases for prime officers like house or defence.
For income secretary Sanjay Malhotra and financial affairs secretary Ajay Seth too, this would be the third Price range. Malhotra’s first Price range was as monetary companies secretary in 2022.
Somanathan, who was a part of Narendra Modi’s PMO, is the primary amongst equals within the finance ministry with Pandey and Seth being his batchmates from the 1987 batch of IAS. The Tamil Nadu cadre officer is the person answerable for dealing with authorities spending and retains it on a decent leash, in search of to make sure that wastage is diminished and performs by the rule guide. On the similar time, he believes in protecting the books clear and clear, even when it means spending extra to scale back off-Price range borrowings.
Within the Price range, as a result of be introduced on Thursday, all eyes can be on how the Modi authorities tackles the ticklish situation of making certain that authorities staff aren’t worse off beneath the Nationwide Pension System than the outdated pension scheme. Apart from, Somanathan’s inputs are seen to be essential in making certain that the fiscal glide path is maintained regardless of what’s prone to be greater pre-poll spending.
Seth can be main the Price range division and can make sure that the numbers are so as. Seth and Somanathan have additionally centered on sustaining sturdy public spending put up Covid. They’ve sought to make sure that ministries spend the cash allotted for infrastructure initiatives.
Malhotra and Pandey are the 2 officers answerable for elevating assets, however with elections not far away, each should undertake a business-as-usual technique till the total Price range is introduced in July.
The main target for them and the Central Board of Direct Taxes and Central Board of Oblique Taxes and Customs can be to make sure that the present monetary 12 months’s targets are met.
