NIB on its way, to have powers of approval
It, therefore, suggested a CCI, to be assisted by a committee of secretaries.
There was also a debate over whether the proposed body should be given the power of approval of projects or vested with monitoring powers only. All these issues were said to have been “sorted out” in the past few days, leading to the finalisation of the Cabinet note.
Some ministries and departments had expressed reservations over setting of a timeline or deadline for them to make decisions, failing which the NIB would take over the matter. Sources said that it has now been decided to have different timelines depending on the ministries and the nature of projects. For instance, if there is a nuclear power project, more time has to be given for the decision-making process to be completed.
What appears to have swung the deal in favour of the NIB — an idea conceived by finance minister P Chidambaram — was the strong political backing of the Congress to it. Senior leaders like Digvijay Singh had brushed off objections of naysayers to support the NIB.
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