Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that the constitution of National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) has laid the foundation of a true federal structure in the development process of transforming India.
In his blog and Twitter the Chief Minister said the new dispensation would go a long way in meeting the developmental challenges of India. The Chief Minister said that India woke up to a new dawn of development based on cooperation and democratic values in the New Year on January 1, 2015. This epoch-changing development has taken place in the form of the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) replacing the Planning Commission of India.
Chouhan said that in 1952, the then Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru setting up the Planning Commission of India was the right decision in the right direction in view of the circumstances and requirements of that time for all round development of the nation. Post-independence the Commission played a very crucial role in the development of the country through the Five Years Plans. The Commission gave a very good account of itself in planning, formulating and implementing schemes to a great extent. However, over the decades, especially after the economic liberalization in the early 1990s the Planning Commission started outliving its existence.
In democracy different States are ruled by different political parties. It was increasingly being felt that the Planning Commission had become a tool of the powers that be at the Centre to serve their interests by showing prejudices, slants and aversions against States. Discrimination in funds allocations was also experienced by the States for these reasons.
The Chief Minister said that the Planning Commission had started showing lack of democratic ethos in its functioning. The discussions held by the Commission with Chief Ministers had been reduced to a mere ritual. Schemes were formulated at the Centre and sent to the States for implementation. While formulating the schemes the specific geographical, social, economic, historical and cultural requirements of the States were not taken into account. It is a major factor responsible for not reaching desired fruits of development to the masses. I have been maintaining at different fora that just as one single medicine cannot cure all diseases, there cannot be a fit-for-all scheme or programme for all States. This is particularly true about Centrally- sponsored schemes.
Chouhan said that the most important thing about the NITI set up by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to replace the Planning Commission is that it followed comprehensive consultations with all the Chief Ministers. Its Governing Council includes all Chief Ministers of the States and lt. Governors of the Union Territories. This would give a new direction and momentum to the development of the States.
The Chief Minister said that another special feature of the new dispensation is that it provides for constitution of Regional Councils to resolve contentious inter-State issues. This would remove the bottlenecks in development and the States while pushing up their own development would contribute more actively and promptly to development of the country.
Chouhan said that the NITI would facilitate planning at the village level, which is very important. “In Madhya Pradesh we have already done it. We have Master Plans of all the villages in place. These plans have been chalked out in consultation with the villagers. The Action Plans accommodate their suggestions and advice. The process of execution of these Action Plans has already started. I am happy that this process is being introduced across the country. This would help harness the available resources for development of villages in a more efficient manner,” he said.