Need to monitor welfare schemes: Khurshid

Government-sponsored welfare schemes need to be monitored so that the benefits reach the targeted sections effectively, Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said Tuesday. “Wherever there are schemes for the welfare of people, especially for the poorer sections of the society, their implementation needs to be monitored so as to ensure that the benefits actually reach the people in an effective way,” Khurshid said.He was inaugurating an orientation-cum-training programme organised for monitoring of the implementation of various schemes of the minority affairs ministry and its allied organizations.The programme was held for National Level Monitors (NLMs) appointed by the ministry. Khurshid said the role of NLMs becomes more important as “they will have to monitor not only the quantity, but also the quality of the schemes ”.Secretary Vivek Mehrotra said the minority affairs ministry was one of the very few to have independent monitoring of its programmes.The reports of NLMs would provide information and data enabling mid-course corrective measures to ensure effective implementation of the schemes, he said.In order to implement the mechanism of appointing NLMs effectively, the ministry signed an agreement with National Productivity Council of India, a society under the aegis of the commerce and industry ministry, in December last year.The tasks of advertising, selection, training and deployment of NLMs and making analyzed presentations on their findings to the ministry are being carried out by the NPC.The NPC will engage 223 NLMs for the purpose.
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