Public Accounts Committee expresses concern over 'inordinate delay' in setting up INDU

New Delhi, Mar 19 (PTI) The parliamentary Public Accounts Committee has expressed concern over the "inordinate delay" and the resultant cost escalation in setting up the Indian National Defence University (INDU), and recommended that the institution be established at the earliest to curb further cost escalations.
    In a report, the panel has also underlined that it is "surprised" to observe that a "trite reply" has been submitted by the Ministry of Defence, with no mention of the specific reasons for the delay of more than two decades in setting up the university.
    The action taken by the government on the observations and recommendations of the committee, contained in the committee's 118th report on "Inordinate delay in setting up of Indian National Defence University (INDU)", was presented in Parliament on Wednesday.
    The panel has observed that the idea of the autonomous institution of national
importance was first mooted by the Chief of Staff Committee in 1967 and again
endorsed by the in-house Lieutenant General Sethna Committee in 1982.
    "The Committee are disappointed to note that fifty-seven years after it was first mooted, and over seven years after the Indian National Defence University (INDU) Bill, 2015 was made available for public consultation, the university has still not been established," it said in the report.
    The committee opined that in the current geopolitical scenario, an intellectual feeder and platform for dealing holistically with all aspects of national security is required and, therefore, recommended that the INDU may be established with world-class infrastructure, learned faculty and idea or content developers to "match up to similar institutions on the global arena".
    The report said "while expressing concern over the inordinate delay and resultant cost escalation in setting up of the university, the Committee had recommended that the university may be set up at the earliest to curb further escalations in the costs".
    The panel said it has noted that the land for the university was purchased in September 2012 for Rs 164.62 crore and an additional expenditure of Rs 11.6 crore was incurred for barbed-wire fencing, a boundary wall and a perimeter road.
    The committee said it has noted from the ministry's response that the actual estimates for setting up the university can only be worked out after the scope and mandate of the INDU are evolved.
    In this context, the committee desired to be apprised of the status of the land as on date -- whether there are encroachments on it and if so, the details thereof. The committee further desired to be apprised of the specific measures being taken to ensure that there is no encroachment on the land.
    Also, noting that the setting up of the INDU has been beset by delays owing to extensive deliberations for several years "without any concrete results", the committee exhorted the Ministry of Defence to apprise it of the precise reasons ad seriatim for the inordinate delay in the establishment of such an important institution, and impressed upon it to arrange to expedite the finalisation of the report of a two-member panel.
    The parliamentary committee also desired that consultations with stakeholders may be carried out within a strict time-frame.
    The committee reiterated that specific reasons for the delay in a chronological order may be furnished to it as this would allow the ministry to identify problem areas so that the same may be obviated while establishing the university.
    The parliamentary panel also recommended that the two-member committee may submit its report urgently and further consultation with stakeholders may be
carried out within a strict time-frame to enable an early decision in the matter.
    "The Committee are disappointed to note the lax reply of the Ministry that the two-member committee is still being requested to expedite its report," it said.
    In view of the dire need of the establishment of a national defence university, the committee may be apprised of the details of the original deadline and extensions, if any, granted, with reasons for the delay in the submission of a report, it said.
    The ministry may closely assist the committee and simultaneous consultations be carried out with the stakeholders to avoid any further delay in setting up the university. The committee desired to be apprised of the date-wise progress in the matter.
    According to the report, the Ministry of Defence's Department of Defence, in its action-taken reply, has said "after circulation of the Cabinet note, in the inter-ministerial consultation, the need for reworking of the proposal to broaden the mandate of IDU as an institution of excellence to study various areas of emerging challenges such as modern warfare, our neighbourhood environment, space, seas, cyber and other areas has emerged".
    "Accordingly, in this direction, a two-member Committee with Dr Anil Kakodkar as Chairman and Prof. V Venkata Ramana as Member was constituted in this ministry on
09.11.2020 to evolve the proposal in consultation with stakeholders like Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS), Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA), Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) etc.," the panel was informed by the ministry.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)