Delhi News : PM Modi chairs 8th NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting
Prime Minister Narendra Modi presided over the NITI Aayog's 8th Governing Council Meeting earlier today. The meeting was place at New Delhi's Pragati Maidan's New Convention Centre. Chief Ministers/Lt. Governors from 19 states and six union territories attended.
The Prime Minister emphasised the need of the Centre, States, and UTs working together to realise people's ambitions and aspirations for a Viksit Bharat by 2047. He stated that NITI Aayog can play a significant role in assisting states in developing and aligning their strategy for the next 25 years with the National Development Agenda. He asked the states and union territories to collaborate with NITI Aayog so that the country can make a quantum leap towards realising its vision for Amrit Kaal.
The Prime Minister stated that NITI Aayog is undertaking a number of efforts to build cooperative and competitive federalism, including the Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP) and Aspirational Blocks Programme (ABP). Both of these programmes demonstrate the strength of collaboration across the Centre, States, and Districts, as well as the impact of data-driven governance in improving the lives of ordinary residents at the grassroots level.
The Prime Minister emphasised the importance of states and the central government promoting Shree Anna during the International Year of Millets. He also discussed the importance of working towards water conservation through the Amrit Sarovar programme.
The Prime Minister emphasised the significance of fiscal discipline at the state and local levels. He urged states to use the Gati Shakti Portal not only for infrastructure and logistics, but also for local area development and social infrastructure construction.
Speaking of the G20 meetings being conducted in the country, he stated that while the G20 has brought India prominence on the global arena, it has also presented States with the opportunity for worldwide exposure.
The Prime Minister also spoke about the significance of skilling people to meet global criteria, promoting MSMEs, expanding the country's tourism potential, decreasing compliances at the state level, including the decriminalisation of minor offences, and the establishment of Ekta Malls. When discussing Nari Shakti, he emphasised the importance of women-led development. He also spoke about ending the menace of TB by 2025.
The Chief Minister/Lt. Governors made a variety of policy recommendations. They cited specific concerns concerning the states that necessitate Centre-State collaboration. They highlighted some of the major proposals and best practises in areas such as green strategies, the need for zone-wise planning, tourism, urban planning, agriculture, quality of workmanship, and logistics, among others.
The Prime Minister thanked the CMs and LGs for attending the meeting and sharing their perspectives and experiences. He stated that NITI Aayog will investigate the states' problems, challenges, and best practises before deciding how to proceed.
KEJRIWAL, BHAGWANT MANN, MAMATA TO SKIP MEETING
Meanwhile, Arvind Kejriwal, Bhagwant Mann, Mamata Banerjee, K Chandrashekar Rao, Ashok Gehlot, Nitish Kumar, and MK Stalin have declared a boycott of the Niti Aayog conference.
In a letter to the prime minister, AAP supremo and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal argued that the country's "cooperative federalism" was being turned into a "joke".
The ordinance just introduced by the BJP-led central government has restored the elected Delhi government's executive control over bureaucracy, which was previously granted to it by the Supreme Court in its May 11 decision.
Kejriwal In his letter to Prime Minister Modi, Kejriwal also claimed that non-BJP governments in the country were being destabilised through the use of money or the fear of central investigation agencies such as the ED and CBI instigating the defection of their MLAs. He also questioned whether such move promoted the country's cooperative federalism.
The Niti Aayog conference will take place on Saturday, and the Commission's goal was to establish a vision of India and advance cooperative federalism, as Kejriwal stated in his letter.
"The way democracy has been attacked, non-BJP governments have been toppled and prevented from functioning in the last few years, is neither an Indian vision nor cooperative federalism," he claimed.
"Ii is pointless to attend the Niti Aayog meeting when the Constitution and democracy are openly violated and cooperative federalism is being mocked." People are advising us not to attend the Niti Aayog meeting tomorrow.
The Delhi chief minister has been travelling non-BJP-ruled states, engaging with opposition leaders to rally support for a Bill on the ordinance that will be debated in the Rajya Sabha.
So far, he has met with Mamata Banerjee, Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thakre, Nitish Kumar, and Tejashvi Yadav. Kejriwal will also meet with his Telangana counterpart and has requested meetings with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and senior party leader Rahul Gandhi.
The decision came a day after Banerjee's TMC stated that it will boycott the inauguration of the national capital's new Parliament building.
"The reason for Banerjee's absence from the Niti Aayog conference was unknown".
Mamata had shown interest in attending the conference earlier this month, saying she would bring up the problem of the state being purportedly deprived by the Centre.
"I will be participating in the Niti Ayog meeting on May 27 in New Delhi because it is the only platform to highlight state issues," she had stated at the time.
Banerjee had requested Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar to convene an opposition party gathering in Patna at the end of this month to plan for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. However, it does not appear to be feasible at this time.
