Niti Governing Council to Discuss ‘New India 2022’

 Niti Governing Council to Discuss ‘New India 2022’

NITI Aayog, the government’s premier think tank, plans to hold the fourth meeting of its governing council next month to discuss the agenda for ‘New India 2022’ to expedite economic growth over the next four years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the chairman of the Aayog, is likely to chair the meeting, which is expected to be attended by key Union ministers and senior bureaucrats, people aware of the matter said.

The Aayog has been working on the strategy document or development agenda for ‘New India 2022’ for a while. Earlier, it had planned to come out with three documents – a three-year action agenda, seven-year mediumterm strategy paper and a 15-year vision document.In a presentation last year, it had said that the foundation for freedom from six problems — poverty, dirt, corruption, terrorism, casteism and communalism — would be laid by 2022, when India celebrates 75 years of independence Chief ministers of all states and lieutenant governors of union territories are expected to attend the meeting, which gains significance as this will be the last large meeting of the Centre with the states before the general election next year.

Since the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance is in power in a majority of states, the Aayog is hopeful that its development vision will be accepted without many objections from states, the people cited earlier said. NITI Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar is likely to make a detailed presentation on the roadmap for rapid development of Indian economy.The meeting is likely to highlight to all states the key flagship programmes of the government and their impact on socio-economic development of the country.

The World Bank had in a recent report said India needed a decisive structural reform momentum that succeeded in stimulating investment and export growth while maintaining macroeconomic stability to sustain an 8% GDP growth rate. “Sustaining a growth rate higher than 7.5%, and reaching an aspirational growth rate of 8% or higher will require contributions from all domestic sectors and support from the global economy,” the report said. “Maintaining the hard-won macroeconomic stability, a definite and durable solution to the banking sector issues, realization of the expected growth and fiscal dividend from the GST, and regaining the momentum on an unfinished structural reform agenda are key components of this.”

The Economic Times, New Delhi, 16th May 2018