Discuss the role of Departmentally Related Standing Committees (DRSCs) in strengthening parliamentary oversight over public finances. Are their powers adequate?

Q. Discuss the role of Departmentally Related Standing Committees (DRSCs) in strengthening parliamentary oversight over public finances. Are their powers adequate? (15 marks, 250-350 words)

Parliament's control over the purse rests on Articles 112–114, but floor time is scarce — nearly 90% of Demands for Grants are passed without discussion through the "guillotine" [1]. The 24 DRSCs, constituted in 1993 and serviced by both Houses [2], fill this gap as mini-legislatures that make financial accountability continuous rather than ceremonial.

How DRSCs strengthen financial oversight - Ministry-wise scrutiny of Demands for Grants: the Budget Session recess — February 14 to March 8 in 2026 [3] — is reserved for committees to examine each ministry's estimates before Phase II votes them. - Scale of work: DRSCs examined 331 Demands for Grants, 41 Bills and 197 subjects in the 16th Lok Sabha, with 503 Action Taken Reports [4]. - Technical depth: closed-door sittings allow stakeholder depositions — officials, regulators and experts — producing evidence-based reports free of partisan posturing [4]. - Continuity and consensus: committees work year-round across party lines, converting political contest into detailed audit of scheme outlays and underspending [4].

Limits on their powers - Recommendations carry only persuasive value; the executive may reject them without a binding obligation to act [2]. - Committees cannot alter the Budget — they neither cut nor reallocate a single rupee; the guillotine still disposes of most Demands [1]. - Timing constraints: reports occasionally reach the House barely before the discussion, leaving no time for use [1]. - Falling referrals — only 27% of Bills went to committees in the 16th Lok Sabha against 71% in the 15th — signal weakening institutional respect [4]. - No dedicated research secretariat or power to summon ministers dilutes technical capacity.

DRSCs thus deepen scrutiny but stop short of control: they inform Parliament's financial verdict without shaping it. Mandatory referral of Demands, time-bound government replies on Action Taken Reports, a professional research wing and guaranteed floor time for committee findings would convert persuasion into genuine accountability — realising the constitutional promise that no rupee leaves the Consolidated Fund unexamined.

(~320 words)

Sources: 1. PRS Legislative Research — Parliament's scrutiny over government finances — ~90% of Demands for Grants passed via the guillotine; delayed committee reports 2. Lok Sabha (Sansad) — Departmentally Related Standing Committees — list and servicing of DRSCs; reports have persuasive value only 3. PRS Legislative Research — Budget Session 2026 Session Alert — recess from February 14 to March 8, 2026 for committee scrutiny 4. PRS Legislative Research — The Importance of Parliamentary Committees — 331 Demands for Grants, 41 Bills, 197 subjects, 503 ATRs; referral rate 71% to 27%; stakeholder consultation