The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) is a high-level standing committee of the Union Cabinet of India, not a constitutional body, act, or scheme. It is an extra-constitutional body constituted under the Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961, which are framed under Article 77 of the Constitution. The practice of forming such Cabinet Committees dates back to the early years after independence, intended to reduce the workload of the full Cabinet and ensure more efficient deliberation on complex issues. The CCEA was established to handle high-level economic policy decisions and matters concerning industrial, agricultural, and financial administration.
The committee is always chaired by the Prime Minister and includes key ministers holding major economic portfolios. Its mechanism involves formulating and implementing major economic policies, approving large investment proposals, and coordinating economic policy across different ministries. Specifically, the CCEA lays down priorities for public sector investment and considers proposals for investment above a certain threshold, which was ₹1,000 crore in one instance. It also deals with matters like the fixation of prices for agricultural products, price control of industrial raw materials, and all matters relating to disinvestment. The CCEA operates under the Transaction of Business Rules, 1961, and its decisions are final and binding on all ministries, though major policy issues may be referred to the full Cabinet.
The CCEA connects to other key Cabinet Committees, such as the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) and the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), as part of the Union Cabinet's mechanism for focused decision-making. A significant recent change occurred on January 2, 2013, when the Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure was merged with the CCEA. Furthermore, on June 10, 2014, the Cabinet Committee on Prices and the Cabinet Committee on Unique Identification Authority of India related issues were also merged with the CCEA. The threshold for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposals requiring CCEA approval was ₹5,000 crore since November 2015, but the government is currently considering raising this limit to ₹15,000 crore.