According to the report, the Ministry of Railways justified the initial procurement based on the 2011 requirement for new engine blocks but failed to acknowledge the need for a review after the 2014 directive to cease mainline ALCO Locomotive production.”While acknowledging the context in which the initial decision of procuring the CNC machine was taken, it is also evident that with the changing policy landscape, as communicated by the Railway Board in 2014, a thorough review of the procurement plan was a necessity,” the Committee observed in the report.”The Committee, therefore, does not find the reasons afforded by the ministry for going ahead with the proposal for procuring the machine despite the changed policy dimension to the convincing and recommends that the ministry should own responsibility for the failure to review the proposal for purchasing the CNC machine in light of the change in policy,” it added.The Committee also noted that 80 per cent of the payment towards procuring the CNC machine was made to the supplier before the actual shipment.Questioning it, the report said, “The Committee wishes to be apprised of the reasoning behind agreeing to this payment schedule, and safeguards, if any, that may have been put in place to protect the ministry’s interests in the event of non-compliance by the supplier.”Besides, according to the report, the Committee also recommends that, in future procurements, the ministry considers all viable options and selects the most suitable solution to meet its manufacturing or maintenance needs, and minimises the risk of encountering deficiencies or delays.”The Committee also feels that it would be appropriate for the ministry to establish a comprehensive supplier developing and handholding programme for identifying, developing and providing technological support for Indian suppliers so that they could be an integral part of the ‘Make in India’ supply chain system,” the report said.
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