The Union Cabinet today decided to restructure the existing Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS)/ Additional Central Assistance (ACA) schemes in the Twelfth Five Year Plan into 66 schemes, including Flagship programmes. This includes 17 Flagship programmes with significant outlays for major interventions required in health, education, irrigation, urban development, infrastructure, including rural infrastructure, skill development, etc.
To suit the requirements of the States, the Cabinet has also approved that a scheme may have state specific guidelines which may be recommended by an Inter-Ministerial Committee constituted for this purpose. Besides, the financial assistance to the States in these schemes would be provided through the Consolidated Funds of the states. Further, to bring in desired flexibility, the Cabinet has approved that 10% of the outlay of the Schemes be kept as flexi-funds.
For each new CSS/ACA/Flagship scheme, at least 25 per cent of funds may be contributed by the General Category States and 10 percent of funds by the Special Category States including J&K, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
In the BE of 2013-14, budgetary provision has been made for 137 CSS and 5 Scheme based ACA excluding block grants.
These arrangements will come into force for the remaining years of the Twelfth Five Year Plan and will help in optimum utilisation of resources for desired results.
The Finance Minister in his budget speech on February 28, 2013 had stated that Government is concerned about the proliferation of CSS and ACA schemes and that each scheme would be reviewed and restructured. Earlier, the National Development Council (NDC), while approving the12th plan in its meeting in December 2012 had also recommended building flexibility in the schemes to suit the requirements of the State Governments.