PMO in 3rd term of Modi drops hints of change

Babus claim Modi giving more space to ministers in 3rd term

By Manish Anand

New Delhi, July 12: A month after the formation of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the helm in his third term, cues from the PMO suggest that subtle changes are unfolding. The PMO (Prime Minister’s Office) in the first two term of the NDA government was widely seen to have got an excessive centralisation of power.

“There are signs of changes in the PMO. It is definitely not what had been the norms in the first two terms of the NDA government,” said a top-ranking official in the Central government.

Except for hardening of the punctuality norms for the employees of the Central government and its various departments, there are suggestions that the Ministries may have more space to work on own than had been the case in the first two terms of the NDA dispensation.

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“Don’t look askance at the PMO always; the PMO is not to be looked at for issues which could be addressed at ministries and levels of the departments,” another senior official quoted the prime minister telling secretaries in a meeting last month.

The third term of the NDA government is markedly distinct from the earlier two terms. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is without a majority of own now in the Lok Sabha.

The BJP is now dependent on two NDA allies – the Janata Dal (United) and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP). Both the NDA allies have legacies of dumping the BJP.

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The officials in the government stated that the PMO had earlier been “micro-managing” the affairs of the Ministries. “The phone calls from the PMO to secretaries were the norms of the day in the first two terms,” added the official.

Another official, while noting that there was indeed signs of changes, looked at the positive side, saying that the Cabinet now has ministers who are experienced hands in governance. The presence of senior ministers in the council of ministers could also have been a reason that the PMO may not be as “intrusive” as it had been in the past, added the official.

“The likes of Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Nitin Gadkari, Manohar Lal Khattar, and a few more don’t need to be told what they should do, and these ministers know the bureaucracy well to need the PMO intervening all the times to get files moving,” said the official.

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About The Author

Manish Anand

Manish Anand is a senior journalist with more than two decades of hardcore reporting on beats such as Prime Minister’s Office, Parliament, BJP, Congress, Planning Commission, NITI Aayog, and scores of Union Ministries.

His past has been with The New Indian Express, The Asian Age/Deccan Chronicle, and The Statesman.

For about 15 years, Manish was also a regular commentator and host for talks on AIR on foreign affairs.

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