The Prime Minister of India, who is the real chief executive, has from the very beginning, filled the office of the Chairman of the Commission and has thus provided a link at the highest level. It is true that the Prime Minister does not attend all the meetings of the commission nor does he attend to its day-to-day business, which has been rightly left to the deputy chairman of the Commission. Nevertheless, the association of the Prime Minister at this level does lend much prestige and influence to the commission. Apart from the Prime Minister, a number of other ministers have in course of time been appointed as the members of the Commission. An important link at the official level was forged at the very inception of the Commission by making the Cabinet Secretary the ex-officio Secretary to the Commission. This arrangement was certainly helpful in the beginning to bring about a close link between the government and the Commission. The Deputy Chairman of the Commission has from the very beginning provided the main working link between the Cabinet at the centre, the Chief Ministers of different states and the Commission. This link has been particularly effective when he also happened to be a Cabinet Minister. He is a permanent invitee to the meetings of the Cabinet and its Committees. Also, many officers of the Commission function as members of the various governmental committees and vice versa. Thus it is evident from the ongoing discussion that the relation of the planning Commission with the Union and State Governments is a rather close one. |