Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi: Several Chief Ministers gathered in New Delhi to attend a key NITI Aayog meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, providing an opportunity for states to present their concerns and pressing issues.
“The meeting under PM Modi’s leadership will address various state-specific concerns. Goa is actively participating and has also announced 10 percent reservations under the Agniveer scheme for uniformed services,” said Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant.
The central theme for the meeting is “Viksit Bharat@2047,” focusing on envisioning India as a developed nation by the year 2047. The agenda includes discussing the approach paper for this vision document, with PM Modi presiding over the discussions.
While Chief Ministers from all BJP-ruled states are in attendance, Opposition leaders have refused to participate, citing the ‘raw deal’ they received in the Union Budget. Among states governed by INDIA bloc parties, only West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is attending the meeting.
Mamata Banerjee expressed her intention to protest against the political discrimination meted out to Bengal during the NITI Aayog meeting. “They say the Budget shows cooperative federalism, but it is biased politicisation. The Budget is total deprivation of states. You can give some special package to your friends but you can’t deprive opposition states completely,” she asserted, adding that states must be empowered.
The boycott was initiated by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, followed by Congress-ruled states including Himachal Pradesh’s Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, Karnataka’s Siddaramaiah, and Telangana’s Revanth Reddy. The Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government, under Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, along with the Jharkhand and Kerala Chief Ministers, Hemant Soren and Pinarayi Vijayan respectively, have also decided to skip the event.
