MISSION MODE (MM) PROJECTS OF THE (DRDO)

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• Assessing the Mission Mode (MM) projects of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has flagged time and cost overrun in completion of projects, irregular closure of projects declaring them successful despite non-achievement of one or more key objectives and parameters, and taking up of new projects for realising the unachieved objectives of earlier closed projects declared as successful.
• “In 119 out of the 178 projects, the original time schedules could not be adhered to. In 49 cases, the additional time was in fact more than 100% of the original time frame.
• Overall, the delays ranged from 16% to 500% and extension of time for completion of projects was taken multiple times.
• Time overruns in completion of MM projects, where technologies are either available or easily accessible, defeats the purpose of taking them up as an MM Project,” CAG said in a performance audit on ‘Management and Outcome of Mission Mode Projects in DRDO’, the report of which was tabled in Parliament on December 21.
• Out of the 86 projects declared as successful during January 2010 and December 2019, in 20 projects involving an expenditure of ₹1,074.67 crore, one or more key objective(s)/parameter(s) was/were not achieved, the report noted.
• Mission Mode (MM) projects are taken up by DRDO as high-priority projects based on specific user requirements with a definite time frame for their completion.
• The report highlighted that despite the fact that MM projects have a very high outcome certainty due to ready availability of underlying technology, there were considerable delays in initiation and sanction of such projects by DRDO.
• Stating that there were abnormal delays in submission of Administrative Closure Reports ranging from 15 to 112 months, the report said, “Out of 86 successfully closed projects, in 25 projects, the Transfer of Technology (ToT) has not been concluded or production has not started even after five to 12 years of successful closure of projects.”

SOURCE: THE HINDU, THE ECONOMIC TIMES, PIB