New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the NITI Aayog’s fifth governing council meeting at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday. This would be the first meeting of the planning body after the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance formed a new government at the centre after a stellar win in the recently concluded Lok Sabha election.
Farm distress, drought and security concerns in Maoist-affected districts will be high on the agenda.The meeting will be attended by chief ministers, lieutenant governors of union territories, union ministers and senior government officials. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, however, has refused to attend the meeting, saying it is “fruitless” as the Niti Aayog has no financial powers to support state plans. Her Telangana counterpart K Chandrashekar Rao too will skip the meeting.
Andhra Pradesh’s new Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy met Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday evening and discussed the special status demand for his state, a day before the NITI Aayog meet. Reddy said he took an appointment with the Home Minister “to try and prevail on him and to also soften PM’s heart on the special category status, what we will definitely be asking for in tomorrow’s (Saturday) NITI Aayog meeting.”
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is also expected to raise the demand for special status to his state. Kumar, a BJP ally, has considerable presence in the Lok Sabha. He has been pressing for the status for a many years now.
To push its demand for special category status for Odisha, the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) is planning to join hands with the YSR Congress and the JD(U) in parliament and raise their voice unitedly. “Though the idea is in nascent stage, we are in favour of making a move with other parties in order to make impact in Parliament,” BJD Parliamentary Party leader and Puri Lok Sabha lawmaker Pinaki Mishra told PTI.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath hosted a dinner for the Chief Ministers of Congress ruled states. Congress chief ministers Amarinder Singh, Bhupesh Baghel, V Narayanasamy and Ashok Gehlot have been invited.
The Chief Ministers of the Congress-ruled states are expected to raise key farmers issues and also share the benefits of the loan waiver scheme implemented by them at the NITI Aayog meeting, PTI reported.
