Thiruvananthapuram: In one of the most significant administrative reforms undertaken by the newly elected UDF government, Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan has initiated a comprehensive restructuring of the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB), signalling a decisive shift in the functioning of the state’s premier infrastructure financing agency.
Even though it’s just two weeks since taking over, he has held two special meetings on the working and functioning of KIIFB.
The move is being projected as part of a broader effort to bring greater transparency, accountability and financial discipline to public institutions.
Significantly, with Satheesan also holding the Finance portfolio, the Chief Minister is expected to exercise direct control over KIIFB, ending what government sources describe as years of autonomous functioning and weak oversight.
Established in 1999 as the state’s principal infrastructure funding vehicle, KIIFB has evolved into one of Kerala’s most influential public sector institutions, financing projects worth more than Rs 60,000 crore across sectors ranging from roads, healthcare and education to water supply, power and ports.
Over the years, however, its growing financial footprint has also attracted criticism over spending practices, staffing patterns and governance mechanisms.
The government’s decision follows preliminary reviews that reportedly pointed to widespread irregularities in appointments, an increasing dependence on contract staff, and the concentration of key positions among a relatively small network of individuals.
Concerns have also been raised over the continued presence of retired officials in influential roles and the alleged proliferation of high-paying posts outside the regular government framework.
As part of the overhaul, the government is planning to bring KIIFB under the direct supervision of the Finance Department and gradually phase out a large number of temporary and contract appointments.
Future staffing is expected to rely primarily on qualified serving government officers and finance department personnel deputed to the institution.
Allegations have also surfaced that some employees working with KIIFB are also running their own private consultancies.
The administration is also examining the organisational structure of KIIFB and its affiliated entities, with a view to reducing duplication, curbing expenditure and strengthening accountability.
A broader scrutiny of past appointments, financial commitments and administrative decisions is also under consideration.
For the Satheesan government, the exercise represents more than a routine restructuring.
It is being positioned as an attempt to redefine the governance architecture of an institution that has become central to Kerala’s development model.
If implemented in full, the overhaul could mark the most far-reaching transformation in KIIFB’s history, placing the state’s powerful infrastructure funding agency under tighter political and financial oversight than ever before.
No sooner had Congress-led UDF registered a stunning win in the Assembly polls than KIIFB CEO and the closest aide of outgoing Chief Minister K.M. Abraham quit his post.
(IANS)
