The government on July 23 issued orders for constituting an 11-member committee under former bureaucrat Vinay Sheel Oberoi to systematically review critical projects under execution by the defence ministry. (Sakib Ali / HT File Photo)

A high-powered committee constituted three months ago by the defence ministry to review capital programmes worth at least Rs 500 crore, in order to expedite critical military projects, is likely to be scrapped, according to four officials who are familiar with the development and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The government on July 23 issued orders for constituting an 11-member committee under former bureaucrat Vinay Sheel Oberoi to systematically review critical projects under execution by the defence ministry for their “timely completion in a cost-optimal manner.”

The panel, which was supposed to submit its preliminary status report by August 31, and a follow-up report by October 30, has not even met once, said one of the officials cited above. Its term ends in February 2019.

“For all practical purposes, the panel is history now,” said an official, although the committee members have been given no further instructions after the July 23 letter.

Hindustan Times accessed the letter (No. IDS/PPFD/PPFS/Monitoring/ 22109/CPRC) by Rear Admiral Kapil Mohan Dhir of the Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff (IDS), which is a single-point organisation for jointmanship in the ministry that integrates policy, doctrine, war fighting and military purchases.

“Timely completion of critical design and development, research and development, and other capital projects is a high-priority area for the ministry to achieve the desired operational preparedness and to effectively contribute to Make in India and Skill India programmes,” reads the letter, adding that the raksha mantri (defence minister) has approved the constitution of a capital projects review committee with 11 members and two special invitees.

While the letter clearly states that Oberoi is the chairman of the review committee, the former bureaucrat who was the higher education secretary, said he was not heading the panel. “I never was. You better ask them [the defence ministry]. I have been out of the country,” he said on Wednesday when asked why the committee had not met yet.

Oberoi was higher education secretary in July when a political controversy broke out over the ‘Institute of Excellence’ status being conferred to the proposed Jio Institute of Reliance Foundation. Union minister Prakash Javadekar clarified in Parliament in July “only a Letter of Intent” was issued to Jio Institute, which was among three private sector institutions selected by the government for the IoE category.

Two of the four officials cited above suggested that the ministry may have put the committee on the back burner because of the controversy. Asked if it had anything to do with the IoE controversy, Oberoi said, “No, no… it has nothing to do with that. I know of a press release about the committee but I have no communication that I will be heading it.”

Experts say the panel would have served an important role. “It seemed like a great idea to have such a panel. Members must be carefully selected and known for their ability to deliver. It is unfortunate that this panel could not make any difference,” said military affairs expert Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).

The defence ministry first announced the 13-member Raksha Mantri’s Advisory Committee on Ministry of Defence Capital Projects in February, but it was approved only on July 23 with 11 members and two special invitees (instead of 13 members). The special invitees are from private consultancy firms, KPMG and Ernst & Young.

According to a government statement issued on February 7, when the committee was announced, the panel’s terms of reference included undertaking “independent review and status check” of critical ongoing capital projects worth more than Rs 500 crore.

The panel was also tasked with assessing the “physical and financial progress” of the programmes reviewed by it, apart from identifying reasons causing delay and recommending the way forward.