All eyes on Raj NITI meet

​Hyderabad/New Delhi: The meeting of the governing council of NITI Aayog to be held in New Delhi on Sunday has assumed great importance in the wake of recent political developments and many states expressing their displeasure at the Central government on one issue or the other.

The meeting to be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to take up issues like measures taken to double farmers’ income, progress of NDA government’s flagship schemes such as Ayushman Bharat, National Nutrition Mission and Mission Indradhanush. Besides this, development of aspirational districts and celebration of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi are likely to figure on the agenda.

The day-long meeting of the council will also track the work done during the previous year and deliberate upon the future developmental priorities. But what makes this meeting more important is the fast pace developments that are taking place for the first time in the last four years, where Chief Ministers of various states are confabulating a day ahead of the meeting to decide on the united stand they should take at the meeting.

If need be, they should register their strong protest on certain issues specific to their states and also demand amendments to the terms of reference of the 15th Finance Commission.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who is miffed with the Centre for its failure to extend hand-holding and implement the AP State Re-organisation Act 2014, has decided to utilise the occasion to draw the attention of all Chief Ministers about the refusal of the Centre to grant special category status. He will have a face to face meeting with Modi. Naidu, it may be mentioned here, has been holding telephonic discussions with Chief Ministers of West Bengal, Kerala, Puducherry, Karnataka and Punjab on the issues to be raised during the meeting.

According to AP Finance Minister Y Ramakrishnudu, Naidu has prepared a 24-page report which he would be circulating to all the CMs at the meeting.

Though Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is also in Delhi the chances of CMs of two Telugu states are unlikely to meet. KCR, according to officials, is likely to make a presentation on Telangana government’s flagship schemes – Rythu Bandhu and farmers' insurance schemes -- at the NITI Aayog meeting.

Official sources said KCR has prepared a note in digital format to make a power point presentation on his government’s endeavour to promote farming a profitable profession by providing Rs 8,000 annual financial assistance per acre to every farmer and extend Rs 5 lakh insurance cover to farmer families. Creation of crop colonies, adoption of new farm techniques, marketing facilities and the supply of fertilizers and seeds at farmers doorsteps will also be included in the presentation.