Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji
Panaji, Jul 23: Making his first intervention as a regular MLA in the Goa Legislative Assembly, Govind Gaude on Tuesday sharply criticised the Finance Department for rejecting project tenders despite the availability of budgetary provisions and necessary administrative and technical sanctions.
Speaking during the ongoing discussion on the State Budget, Gaude questioned whether such rejections implied a lack of trust in the competence of departmental engineers and officers who granted those approvals.
“When the Finance Department withholds financial clearance, is it suggesting that officers who provide technical and administrative sanctions are incompetent?” he asked.
The intervention marked Gaude’s first budget session as a non-minister since 2017. He had served in the cabinet under late Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and continued under Pramod Sawant until June 19, when he was dropped from the cabinet following his outspoken criticism of the Tribal Welfare Department, a portfolio held by Sawant himself. Gaude had raised allegations of corruption within the department.
In his remarks, Gaude pointed to poor inter-departmental coordination as a key reason for underutilised capital expenditure and delayed projects. He urged the Chief Minister to address internal administrative issues.
“It appears that ego clashes between officers of different departments are stalling progress,” he said, calling for high-level discussions to resolve such frictions for improved governance.
He also highlighted bureaucratic hurdles in disbursing welfare schemes to marginalised communities, particularly via the Tribal Welfare Department, OBC and SC/ST Corporations, and the Social Welfare Department.
As an example, Gaude cited a scheme where beneficiaries are required to get a government servant’s signature as a guarantor — a condition he said is difficult to fulfill.
“No one easily agrees to sign such forms. This clause should be revised or removed,” he suggested, calling for simplification of welfare processes.