PDS will be first under Evaluation Office lens

The newly set up Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) will first evaluate the Public Distribution System (PDS) scheme. The Government has set up this office with the objective of improving the effectiveness of government policies and programmes by assessing their impact and outcomes. It will be headed by Ajay Chibber, who previously worked with the United Nations Development Programme as its Director General.

The body will conduct independent evaluations of plan programmes, especially flagship programmes, and assess their effectiveness, relevance and impact. IEO will have the freedom to conduct independent evaluations on any programmes which have access to public funding or implicit of explicit guarantees from the government, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia told reporters while announcing Chibber’s appointment .

Chibber said, “The first official request that we got from a ministry is to evaluate PDS. It is a very important issue, as also there will be now a food security bill. So, we will take an objective look at the whole thing. We have to find a way to get the subsidy to the poorest sections of the population,” he said.

shishir.sinha@thehindu.co.in

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