Focus: GS II- Polity and Governance
Why in News?
NITI Aayog welcomed Shri Parameswaran Iyer as NITI Aayog’s CEO.
About NITI Aayog
- The NITI Aayog serves as the apex public policy think tank of the GoI.
- It was established in 2015, by the NDA government, to replace the Planning Commission which followed a top-down model.
- It advises both the centre and states on social and economic issues.
- It is neither a constitutional body nor a statutory body but the outcome of an executive resolution. It was not created by the act of parliament.
It has two Hubs.
- Team India Hub acts as interface between States and Centre.
- Knowledge and Innovation Hub builds the think-tank acumen of NITI Aayog.
Composition:
- Chairperson: Prime minister
- Vice-Chairperson: To be appointed by Prime-Minister
- Governing Council: Chief Ministers of all states and Lt. Governors of Union Territories.
- Regional Council: To address specific regional issues, Comprising Chief Minister and Lt. Governors Chaired by the Prime Minister or his nominee.
- Ad-hoc Membership: Two members in ex-officio capacity from leading Research institutions on a rotational.
- Ex-Officio membership: Maximum four from the Union council of ministers to be nominated by the Prime Minister.
- Chief Executive Officer: Appointed by the Prime-minister for a fixed tenure, in the rank of Secretary to Government of India.
- Special Invitees: Experts, Specialists with domain knowledge nominated by the Prime Minister.
Objectives:
- To generate a platform for national development, sectors and strategies with the collaboration of states and centre.
- To boost the factor of cooperative federalism between the centre and the states. For national development, it is necessary for both wings to work in synergy.
- To develop such mechanisms which work at the ground root level for progressive growth. A nation develops when its regions and states develop.
- To work on long term policies and strategies for long-term development.
- To set up a system for monitoring progress so that it can be used for analysing and improving methods.
- To provide a platform for resolving inter-departmental issues amicably.
- To make it a platform where the programmes, strategies, and schemes can be monitored on a day to day basis, and it could be understood which sector needs more resources to develop.
- To upgrade technological advancements in such a manner that focus can be made on initiatives and programmes.
- To ensure India’s level and ranking at the worldwide level and to make India an actively participating nation.
- To progress from food security towards nutrition and standardised meals and focus on agricultural production.
- To make use of more technology to avoid misadventures and corruption in governance.
- To make the working system more transparent and accountable.
NITI Aayog – Seven Pillars of Effective Governance
NITI Aayog works on principles like Antyodaya (upliftment of poor), inclusion (to include all sections under one head), people participation, and so on.
NITI Aayog is a body that follows seven pillars of governance. They are:
- To look after pro-people agenda so that the aspirations and desires of no one are compromised.
- To respond and work on the needs of citizens.
- Make citizens of the nation involve and participate in various streams.
- To empower women in all fields, be it social, technical, economic, or other.
- To include all sects and classes under one head. To give special attention to marginalised and minority groups.
- To provide equal opportunity for the young generation.
- To make the working of government more accountable and transparent. It will ensure less chance of corruption and malpractices.
Related Concerns and Challenges:
- NITI Aayog has no powers in granting discretionary funds to states, which renders it toothless to undertake a transformational intervention.
- It acts as an advisory body only that advises the government on various issues without ensuring the enforceability of its ideas.
- NITI Aayog has no role in influencing private or public investment.
- Politicization of the organization has been in recent times.
- NITI Aayog has been transformed into a glorified recommendatory body which lacks the requisite power to bring positive change in the government’s actions.
