The Cabinet Secretariat is responsible for the administration of the Government of India Rules, 1961 and the Government of India Rules 1961, facilitating a smooth transaction of business in Ministries/ Departments of the Government by ensuring adherence to these rules. The Secretariat assists in decision-making in Government by ensuring Inter-Ministerial coordination, ironing out differences amongst Ministries/ Departments and evolving consensus through the instrumentality of the standing/ad hoc Committees of Secretaries. Through this mechanism new policy initiatives are also promoted. The Secretariat Building houses the following ministries:
The North Block primarily houses the MoF and the MHA.
The terms 'North Block' and 'South Block' are often used to refer to the MoF and the MEA respectively. The Secretariat Building was designed by the prominent British architectHerbert Baker. The building adopts elements from Rajputanastyles of architecture. Examples include the use of Jali – decorated to protect from the scorching sun and monsoon rains of India. Another feature of the building is a dome-like structure known as the Chatri, a design unique to India, used in ancient times to give relief to travellers by providing shade from the hot Indian sun. The style of architecture used in Secretariat Building is unique to Raisina Hill.
Organization
Cabinet Secretariat has three wings: Civil, Military and Intelligence. Under the Cabinet Secretary, there are several secretaries heading various departments, e.g., Secretary , Secretary and Secretary . The Directorate of Public Grievances is also under the Cabinet Secretariat.
Cabinet Secretary
The Cabinet Secretary is the ex-officio head of the Civil Services Board, the Cabinet Secretariat, the Indian Administrative Service and head of all civil services under the rules of business of the Government. The Cabinet Secretary is generally the senior-most officer of the Indian Administrative Service. The Cabinet Secretary ranks 11th on the Indian Order of Precedence. The Cabinet Secretary is under the direct charge of the Prime Minister. Though there is no fixed tenure, the office-bearer's tenure can be extended. Before the adoption of the portfolio system in the Government of India, all governmental business was disposed of by the Governor-General-in Council, the Council functioning as a joint consultative board. As the amount and complexity of business of the Government increased, the work of the various departments was distributed amongst the members of the Council: only the more important cases were dealt with by the Governor-General or the Council collectively. This procedure was legalised by the Councils Act of 1861, during the time of Lord Canning, leading to the introduction of the portfolio system and the inception of the Executive Council of the Governor-General. The Secretariat of the Executive Council was headed by the Cabinet Secretary. The constitution of the Interim Government in September 1946 brought a change in the name, though little in functions, of this Office. The Executive Council's Secretariat was then designated as the Cabinet Secretariat. It seems, however, at least in retrospect, that Independence brought some change in the functions of the Cabinet Secretariat. It no longer remained concerned with only the passive work of circulating papers to Ministers and Ministries, but instead developed into an organisation for effecting coordination between the Ministries.
In June 2013, a cell within the Cabinet Secretariat called the Project Monitoring Group was created to track stalled investment projects, both in the public and private sectors and to remove the implementation bottlenecks in these projects on a fast-track basis. An online portal open to the public was created where projects worth over were to be tracked. The Project Monitoring Group was moved to the Prime Minister's Office in 2014.
