As mark of protest, KCR to skip 7th NITI Aayog meeting

India

oi-Prakash KL

Hyderabad,
Aug
06:
As
a
mark
of
protest,
Telangana
Chief
Minister
K
Chandrashekhar
Rao
(KCR)
will
skip
the
seventh
Governing
Council
meeting
of
NITI
Aayog
which
is
going
to
be
held
in
Delhi
on
Sunday.

CM
Telangana
KCR,
penning
a
letter
to
Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
for
not
joining
the
seventh
Governing
Council
meeting
of
NITI
Aayog,
has
expressed
anguish
against
the
centre,
for
states
not
being
given
“flexibility
to
design
and
modify
schemes
based
on
their
needs
&
conditions
to
ensure
maximum
benefit
to
people.”

Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
will
chair
the
seventh
meeting
of
the
Governing
Council
at
Rashtrapati
Bhawan
Cultural
Centre,
New
Delhi.
The
agenda
of
the
meeting,
interalia,
includes
crop
diversification
and
achieving
self-sufficiency
in
oilseeds
and
pulses
and
agri-communities;
implementation
of
the
National
Education
Policy-school
education;
implementation
of
the
National
Education
Policy-higher
education;
and
urban
governance.

As
part
of
preparations
for
the
meeting,
the
National
Conference
of
Chief
Secretaries
held
in
Dharamshala
in
June
2022
which
was
the
culmination
of
the
six
month
long
rigorous
exercise
by
the
Centre
and
States.

The
conference
was
chaired
by
the
Prime
Minister
and
attended
by
the
Chief
Secretaries
of
all
States
and
UTs,
along
with
senior
officials
of
the
Central
and
State
Governments.
The
7th
Governing
Council
Meeting
will
endeavour
to
finalize
a
roadmap
and
outcome
oriented
action
plan
on
each
of
the
above
themes.

This
would
be
the
first
in-person
meeting
of
the
Governing
Council
since
July
2019.
It
is
particularly
important
as
we
enter
Amrit
Kaal
against
the
backdrop
of
the
Covid-19
pandemic
and
in
light
of
India
hosting
the
G20
Presidency
and
summit
next
year.
The
meeting
would
also
lay
emphasis
on
the
importance
of
the
Presidency
for
India
for
the
federal
system
and
the
role
that
states
can
play
in
highlighting
their
progress
at
the
G-20
Platform.

NITI
Aayog’s
Governing
Council
is
the
premier
body
tasked
with
evolving
a
shared
vision
of
national
priorities
and
strategies
with
the
active
involvement
of
States
and
Union
Territories.
The
Governing
Council
presents
a
platform
to
discuss
inter-sectoral,
inter-departmental
and
federal
issues.

It
comprises
the
Prime
Minister
of
India;
Chief
Ministers
of
all
the
states
and
union
territories
with
legislature;
Lt
Governors
of
other
UTs;
Ex-Officio
Members;
Vice
Chairman,
NITI
Aayog;
Full-Time
Members,
NITI
Aayog;
and
Union
Ministers
as
Special
Invitees.
It
provides
one
of
the
most
important
forum
for
deliberations
between
the
Centre
and
States
and
identifying
key
strategies
for
cohesive
action
with
a
whole-of-Government
approach.