The figure of 1,499 consultants does not however include 1,037 Young Professionals, 539 independent consultants, 354 domain experts, 1,481 retired government officers, and 20,376 other low-paid staff hired on contract by 76 departments employed directly or through outsourcing agencies. Nor is information available on payments made to these people by the union government. While the consultants are being paid between one and four lakh Rupees, Young Professionals are said to receive between Rs 50 to 70 thousand a month.
The information was collated by the Department of Expenditure under the Union Ministry of Finance based on the information received from 76 departments about individuals/firms working with them on a contractual basis.
The top six departments, according to the report, with the highest number of consultants are Health and Family Welfare (203), Rural Development (166), Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (149), Ministry of Housing and Urban Administration (147), Women and Child Development (112) and Road Transport and Highway (99).
NITI Aayog employs 95 individuals as Young Professionals at present. Among independent consultants hired on contract, the top three are Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (86), NITI (52), and Road Transport and Highways (41).
With the government abolishing Group D (peons, data entry, housekeeping, etc) recruitment, personnel for such jobs are being hired through outsourcing agencies.