Modi wants ideas from people on institution that'll replace Planning Commission
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Independence Day speech, had said that his government would scrap the six-decade old plan panel to set up a new think-tank that will be more federal in nature.
The government of India wants ideas from people on how the new institution that will replace Planning Commission will look.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Independence Day speech, had said that his government would scrap the six-decade old plan panel to set up a new think-tank that will be more federal in nature.
"Inviting you to share your ideas on what shape the new Institution to replace the Planning Commission can take," Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on Tuesday.
"We envision the proposed Institution as one that caters to the aspirations of 21st century India and strengthens participation of the States," he said.
Modi said the suggestions can be posted on a government website.
"A special Open Forum has been created on MyGov for suggestions on the new Institution. Let the ideas flow! http://www.mygov.nic.in," he tweeted.
Modi, in his speech from Red Fort on August 15, had said that the Planning Commission was "a very old system" that would have to be "rejuvenated and changed a lot".
"I believe that when Planning Commission was constituted, it was done on the basis of the circumstances and the needs of those times. In recent years, Planning Commission has contributed to the growth of the country in its own way.
"I respect that, I am proud of that, but the prevalent situation in the country is different, global scenario has also changed, governments are no longer the centre of economic activities, the scope of such activities has broadened. State governments have been at the center of development and I consider this a good indication. If we have to take India forward, it can happen only by taking the states forward.
"India's federal structure is more important today than in the last 60 years. To strengthen our federal structure, to make our federal structure vibrant, to take our federal structure as a heritage of development, a team of Chief Minister and Prime Minister should be there, a joint team of the Centre and the states should move forward, then to do this job, we will have to think about giving the Planning Commission a look.
So, I am saying from the rampart of the Red Fort that it is a very old system and it will have to be rejuvenated, it will have to be changed a lot. Sometimes it costs more to repair the old house, but, it gives us no satisfaction.
"Thereafter, we have a feeling that it would be better to construct a new house altogether and therefore within a short period, we will replace the planning commission with a new institution having a new design and structure, a new body, a new soul, a new thinking, a new direction, a new faith towards forging a new direction to lead the country based on creative thinking, public-private partnership, optimum utilisation of resources, utilisation of youth power of the nation, to promote the aspirations of state governments seeking development, to empower the state governments and to empower the federal structure.
Very shortly, we are about to move in a direction when this institute would be functioning in place of Planning Commission," he had said.