Cabinet secretariat sets 24-hour deadline for finalising minutes of FIPB meetings

Concerned over the inordinate delay in decision making at various ministries, the cabinet secretariat has asked all secretaries of central government ministries to ensure that the minutes of inter-ministerial meetings, including those of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), are finalised within 24 hours.

The cabinet secretariat has pointed out that the record of discussions and minutes of meetings are being prepared and circulated after considerable lapse of time leading to avoidable delay in the implementation of decisions.

Such delays have particularly been observed in respect of the minutes of inter-ministerial meetings, including those of Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC), Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) and Public Private Partnership Appraisal Committee (PPPAC), etc, the directive said.

It also called for correct and quick recording of decisions, which is important for good governance and implementation of government programmes in a timely manner.

The directive states that officials concerned should dictate the minutes as soon as the meeting is over and submit the same for approval of the competent authority within 24 hours.

Also, as per the directive, the record of discussions and minutes of meetings are much better captured if these are prepared immediately after the meeting when the deliberations are fresh in the memory.

The directive, issued by cabinet secretary Pradeep Kumar Sinha, also wants the ministries to ensure that the minutes or record of discussions thus finalised reach all concerned within seven days of the date of the meeting, and has directed "strict compliance".