Centres of Excellence
Centres of Excellence
Central Sector Scheme on Centres of Excellence for 2017-2020. The Scheme on Centres of Excellence is a Central Sector Scheme initiated in the year 1983. The Scheme was originally conceived to provide ‘selective support’ to Universities, reputed institutions including NGOs, professional organisations and other scientific and technical institutions to enable them to develop into advanced Centres at the national level in that particular subject area.
- During the year 201516, with the closure of the Planning Commission and coupled with
ending of the XlIth Five-Year Plan in 2016-17, it was decided that all Ministries/Departments of GOI,
could, if required, individually undertake a detailed review and evaluation of physical and financial
performance of Plan Schemes and decide on their discontinuation/continuation/merger — of
Schemes. It further decided that a “Sunset Clause” should be introduced for every scheme and to
make it co-terminus with the Finance Commission (FC) Cycles, the first such one being the
remaining Fourteenth FC period ending 2020. In view of the above, the MoEF&CC decided to review
all on-going plan Schemes of the Ministry in order to determine their effectiveness in achieving the
goals of the Ministry. - On the basis of these decisions, the MoEFCC in 2016, set up an Evaluation Committee
headed by Senior Economic Advisor of the Ministry to review and revamp all the XII Plan Schemes of
MoEFCC with a view to change, amend and rationalise to bring effective outcomes to meet
Ministry’s objectives and mandate. In this context, the Scheme on Centres of Excellence was also
reviewed. The Report of the Evaluation Committee has stated that “the setting up of the CoEs has
been largely on ways to support and provide a public interface to Ministry’s policies and
programmes, through education, training, etc. The engagement of CoEs for these tasks may be
discontinued. While these objectives were relevant when the scheme was started in 1983, the future
goals of the scheme have to be in line with the pressing needs of the Ministry”. The Committee
further recommended “The existing CoEs may be discontinued at the XlIth Plan and new Centres to
get project based funding from 2017-18”, a fresh start to establishing CoEs by calling for fresh
applications. - In view of the recommendations made by Evaluation Committee in its report, with the
approval of former Secretary (EF&CC), and the then Minister of State for EF&CC (Independettl
Charge), this Ministry vide letter dated 14.2.2017 had informed all the Centres of Excellence that
with the end of 121P Plan period i.e. on 31.3 203.7, the present Plan Scheme of COE would be revised
and all salary grant to .the present centre of excellence would cease by the end of financial year
ending 31st March 2017. -
The MOEFCC on the basis of the aforesaid recommendations has also prepared a
revamped Scheme on “Centres of Excellence” whereby all institutions of excellence in the country
including all existing Centres of Excellence can apply for financial assistance in project mode under
relevant thematic areas. The purpose of the revamping was to open the Scheme to all institutions in
the country with expertise in identified thematic areas to undertake specific projects on specific
areas of concern and priority and/or urgency of the Ministry to garner and harness excellence and
expertise available in such institutions in meeting Ministry’s objectives of environmental protection
and conservation of natural resources. The Centres of Excellence Scheme will fund specific
projects/research/study/activity,, of priority/concern or urgency in identified thematic areas. The
important thematic areas are Sustainable Development, Climate change, Pollution, Environmental
Health, Development of Clean energy/clean technology/process/ Resource Efficiency, Waste
Management, Biodiversity Conse.rvation, Wildlife Protection, Habitat Conservation and Restoration,
Landscape Conservation and Sustainable Livelihood, Environmental Governance and Policy & Law,
Integration of environmental economics in environmental policy and programmes, Environmental
Impact Assessment, Pollution Control and Abatement, Natural Resource Evaluation and Costing of
Ecosystem Services.