Question : Establishment of NITI Aayog

(a) the objective behind the Establishment of NITI Aayog;

(b) whether it is different from Planning Commission;

(c) if so, the details thereof; and

(d) the achievements of NITI Aayog so far?

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF PLANNING AND MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF STATISTICS AND PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION
(RAO INDERJIT SINGH)
(a): The Government has replaced Planning Commission with a new institution named NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) by issuing a Gazette Notification of Cabinet Secretariat Resolution on 1st January, 2015. A copy of the Resolution is annexed at ANNEXURE-I
As per the resolution, the NITI Aayog will work towards the following objectives:
a. To evolve a shared vision of national development priorities, sectors and strategies with the active involvement of States in the light of national objectives. The vision of the NITI Aayog will then provide a framework ‘national agenda’ to which the Prime Minister and the Chief Ministers can provide impetus to.
b. To foster cooperative federalism through structured support initiatives and mechanisms with the States on a continuous basis, recognizing that strong States make a strong nation.
c. To develop mechanisms to formulate credible plans at the village level and aggregate these progressively at higher levels of government.
d. To ensure, on areas that are specifically referred to it, that the interests of national security are incorporated in economic strategy and policy.
e. To pay special attention to the sections of our society that may be at risk of not benefitting adequately from economic progress.
f. To design strategic and long term policy and programme frameworks and initiatives, and monitor their progress and their efficacy. The lessons learnt through monitoring and feedback will be used for making innovative improvements, including necessary mid-course corrections.
g. To provide advice and encourage partnerships between key stakeholders and national and International like-minded Think Tanks, as well as educational and policy research institutions.
h. To create a knowledge, innovation and entrepreneurial support system through a collaborative community of national and international experts, practitioners and other partners.
i. To offer a platform for resolution of inter-sectoral and inter-departmental issues in order to accelerate the implementation of the development agenda.
j. To maintain a state-of-the-art Resource Centre, be a repository of research on good governance and best practices in sustainable and equitable development as well as help their dissemination to stake-holders.
k. To actively monitor and evaluate the implementation of programmes and initiatives, including the identification of the needed resources so as to strengthen the probability of success and scope of delivery
l. To focus on technology upgradation and capacity building for implementation of programmes and initiatives.
m. To undertake other activities as may be necessary in order to further the execution of the national development agenda, and the objectives mentioned above.
The financial year 2016-17 was the terminal year of 12th Five Year Plan. It was decided to discontinue the system of five-year Plans beyond March, 2017. Government of India has decided to formulate:
(i) a seven year strategy for achievement of the national development agenda from 2017-18 to 2023-24, implementable policy and action as a part of “National Development Agenda” with a mid-term review after 3 years i.e. the year ending March 2020, and
(ii) a three-year Action Plan for 2017-18 to 2019-20 based on the predictability of resources during the currency of 14th Finance Commission Award period. The three year Action Agenda has been prepared which was unveiled by the Finance Minister along with Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Petroleum and Natural Gas Shri Dharmendra Pradhan on 24th August, 2017 & the “Strategy for New India @ 75” document was released by NITI Aayog on 19th December, 2018.
(b): The achievements of goals of NITI Aayog since its inception are given at Annexure II.
(c): The Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO) was established in 18th September 2015 as attached office of NITI Aayog for fulfilling the mandate of Evaluation and Monitoring assigned to NITI Aayog. The findings of the evaluation studies, among others, helps to improve the scheme implementation and outcomes.
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ANNEXURE-I
Annexure to Rajya Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1933, due for answer on 03.07.2019, raised by SHRI P.R. NATARAJANA regarding ESTABLISHMENT OF NITI AAYOG
THE GAZETTE OF INDIA : EXTRAORDINARY [PART I—SEC. 1]
CABINET SECRETARIAT
RESOLUTION
New Delhi, the 1st January, 2015
No. 511/2/1/2015-Cab.—Mahatma Gandhi had said: "Constant development is the law of life, and a man who
always tries to maintain his dogmas in order to appear consistent drives himself into a false position". Reflecting this spirit and the changed dynamics of the new India, the institutions of governance and policy have to adapt to new challenges and must be built on the founding principles of the Constitution of India, the wealth of knowledge from our civilizational history and the present day socio-cultural context.
2. The Planning Commission was set up on the 15th of March, 1950 through a Cabinet Resolution. Nearly 65years later, the country has metamorphosed from an under-developed economy to an emergent global nation with one of the world''s largest economies.
3. From being preoccupied with survival, our aspirations have soared and today we seek elimination, rather than alleviation, of poverty. The people of India have great expectations for progress and improvement in governance, through their participation. They require institutional reforms in governance and dynamic policy shifts that can seed and nurture large-scale change. Indeed, the ''destiny'' of our country, from the time we achieved Independence, is now on a higher trajectory.
4. The past few decades have also witnessed a strengthening of Indian nationhood. India is a diverse country with distinct languages, faiths and cultural ecosystems. This diversity has enriched the totality of the Indian experience.
Politically too, India has embraced a greater measure of pluralism which has reshaped the federal consensus. The States of the Union do not want to be mere appendages of the Centre. They seek a decisive say in determining the architecture of economic growth and development. The one-size-fits-all approach, often inherent in central planning, has the potential of creating needless tensions and undermining the harmony needed for national effort. Dr. Ambedkar had said with foresight that it is "unreasonable to centralise powers where central control and uniformity is not clearly essential or is impracticable".
5. At the heart of the dynamics of transforming India lies a technology revolution and increased access to and
sharing of information. In the course of this transformation, while some changes are anticipated and planned, many are a consequence of market forces and larger global shifts. The evolution and maturing of our institutions and polity also entail a diminished role for centralised planning, which itself needs to be redefined.
6. The forces transforming India are many and include:
a. The industry and service sectors have developed and are operating on a global scale now. To build on thisfoundation, new India needs an administration paradigm in which the government is an "enabler" rather than a "provider of first and last resort". The role of the government as a "player" in the industrial and service sectors has to be reduced. Instead, government has to focus on enabling legislation, policy making and regulation.
b. India''s traditional strength in agriculture has increased manifold on account of the efforts of our farmers and improvements in technology. We need to continue to improve, and move from pure food security to a focus on a mix of agricultural production as well as the actual returns that farmers get from their produce.
c. Today, we reside in a ''global village'', connected by modern transport, communications and media, and networked international markets and institutions. As India ''contributes'' to global endeavours, it is also influenced by happenings far removed from our borders. Global economics and geo-politics are getting increasingly integrated, and the private sector is growing in importance as a constituent within that. India needs to be an active player in the debates and deliberations on the global commons, especially in relatively uncharted areas.
d. India''s middle class is unique in terms of its size and purchasing power. This formidable group is increasing with the entry of the neo-middle class. It has been an important driver of growth and has enormous potential on account of its high education levels, mobility and willingness to push for change in the country. Our continuing challenge is to ensure that this economically vibrant group remains engaged and its potential is fully realised.
e. India''s pool of entrepreneurial, scientific and intellectual human capital is a source of strength waiting to be
unleashed to help us attain unprecedented heights of success. In fact, the ''social capital'' that is present in our people has been a major contributor to the development of the country thus far and, therefore, it needs to be leveraged through appropriate policy initiatives.

f. The Non-Resident Indian community, which is spread across more than 200 countries, is larger in number than the population of many countries of the world. This is a significant geo-economic and geo-political strength. Future national policies must incorporate this strength in order to broaden their participation in the new India beyond just their financial support. Technology and management expertise are self-evident areas where this community can contribute significantly.
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g. Urbanisation is an irreversible trend. Rather than viewing it as an evil, we have to make it an integral part of our policy for development. Urbanisation has to be viewed as an opportunity to use modern technology to create a wholesome and secure habitat while reaping the economic benefits that it offers.
h. Transparency is now a sine qua non for good governance. We are in a digital age where the tools and modes of communication, like social media, are powerful instruments to share and explain the thoughts and actions of the government. This trend will only increase with time. Government and governance have to be conducted in an environment of total transparency - using technology to reduce opacity and thereby, the potential for misadventures in governing.
7. Technology and information access have accentuated the unity in diversity that defines us. They have helped integrate different capabilities of our regions, states and eco-systems towards an interlinked national economy. Indeed, Indian nationhood has been greatly strengthened on their account. To reap the benefits of the creative energy that emerges from the Indian kaleidoscope, our development model has to become more consensual and co-operative. It must embrace the specific demands of states, regions and localities. A shared vision of national development has to be worked out based on human dignity, national self-respect and an inclusive and sustainable development path.
8. The challenges we face as a country have also become more complex:
a. India''s demographic dividend has to be leveraged fruitfully over the next few decades. The potential of our
youth, men and women, has to be realized through education, skill development, elimination of gender bias, and employment. We have to strive to provide our youth productive opportunities to work on the frontiers of science, technology and knowledge economy.
b. Poverty elimination remains one of the most important metrics by which alone we should measure our success as a nation. Every Indian must be given an opportunity to live a life of dignity and self respect. The words of Tiruvalluvar, the sage-poet, when he wrote that "nothing is more dreadfully painful than poverty", and "gripping poverty robs a man of the lofty nobility of his descent", are as true today as they were when written more than two thousand years ago.
c. Economic development is incomplete if it does not provide every individual the right to enjoy the fruits of development. Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya had enunciated this in his concept of Antyodaya, or uplift of the downtrodden, where the goal is to ensure that the poorest of the poor get the benefits of development. Inequalities based on gender biases as well as economic disparities have to be redressed. We need to create an environment and support system that encourages women to play their rightful role in nation-building. Equality of opportunity goes hand in hand with an inclusiveness agenda. Rather than pushing everyone on to a pre-determined path, we have to give every element of society - especially weaker segments like the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes - the ability to influence the choices the country and government make in setting the national agenda. In fact, inclusion has to be predicated on a belief in the ability of each member of society to contribute. As Sankar Dev wrote centuries ago in the Kirtan Ghosh:
''To see every being as equivalent to one''s own soul is the supreme means (of attaining deliverance)".
d. Villages (Gram) continue to be the bedrock of our ethos, culture and sustenance. They need to be fully integrated institutionally into the development process so that we draw on their vitality and energy.
e. India has more than 50 million small businesses, which are a major source of employment creation. These businesses are particularly important in creating opportunities for the backward and disadvantaged sections of the society. Policy making must focus on providing necessary support to this sector in terms of skill and knowledge upgrades and access to financial capital and relevant technology.
f. Responsible development implies environmentally sound development. India is one of the mega-diverse countries. Our environmental and ecological assets are eternal, and must be preserved and safeguarded. The country''s legacy of respect for environment is reflected in our reverence for trees and animals. Our legacy to future generations must be sustainable progress. Each element of our environment (paryavaran) and resources, namely water, land and forest(Jal, Jameen evam Jungle) must be protected; and this must be done in a manner that takes into account their interlinkages with climate (jal vayu) and people (jan). Our development agenda has to ensure that development does not sully the quality of life of the present and future generations.
9. The role of the government in achieving ''national objectives'' may change with time, but will always remain significant. Government will continue to set policies that anticipate and reflect the country''s requirements and execute them in a just manner for the benefit of the citizens. The continuing integration with the world - politically and economically - has to be incorporated into policy making as well as functioning of the government. In essence, effective governance in India will rest on the following pillars:
a. Pro-people agenda that fulfils the aspirations of the society as well as individual,
b. Pro-active in anticipating and responding to their needs.
c. Participative, by involvement of citizens.
d. Empowering women in all aspects
e. Inclusion of all groups, with special attention to the economically weak (garib), the SC, ST and OBC communities, the rural sector and farmers (gaon and kisan) youth and all categories of minorities.
f. Equality of opportunity to our country’s youth
g. Transparency through the use of technology to make government visible and responsive.
10. Governance, across the public and private domains, is the concern of society as a whole. Everyone has a stake in ensuring good governance and effective delivery of services. Creating Jan Chetna, therefore, becomes crucial for people’s initiative. In the past, governance may have been rather narrowly construed as public governance. In today’s changed dynamics with ‘public’ services often being delivered by ‘private’ entities, and the greater scope for ‘participative citizenry’, governance encompasses and involves everyone.
11. The institutional framework of government has developed and matured over the years. This has allowed the development of domain expertise which allows up the chance to increase the specificity of functions given to institutions. Specific to the planning process, there is a need to separate as well as energize the distinct ‘process’ of governance from the ‘strategy’ of governance.
In the context of governance structures, the changed requirements of our country, point to the need for setting up an institution that serves as a Think Tank of the government – a directional and policy dynamo. The proposed institution has to provide governments at the central and state levels with relevant strategic and technical advice across the spectrum of key elements of policy. This includes matters of national and international import on the economic front, dissemination of best practices from within the country as well as from other nations, the infusion of new policy ideas and specific issue based support. The institution has to be able to respond to the changing and more integrated world that India is part of .
An important evolutionary change from the past will be replacing a centre-to-state one way flow of policy by a genuine and continuing partnership with the states. The institution must have the necessary resources, knowledge, skills and ability to act with speed to provide the strategic policy vision for the government as well as deal with contingent issues.
Perhaps most importantly, the institution must adhere to the tenet that while incorporating positive influences from the world no single model can be transplanted from outside into the Indian scenario. We need to find out own strategy for growth. The new institution has to zero in on what will work in and for India. It will be a Bharatiya approach to development.
12. The institution to give life to these aspirations is the NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India). This is being proposed after extensive consultation across the spectrum of stakeholders including inter alia state governments, domain experts and relevant institutions. The NITI Aayog will work towards the following objectives.
a. To evolve a shared vision of rational development priorities, sectors and strategies with the active involvement of States in the light of national objectives. The vision of the NITI Aayog will then provide a framework ‘national agenda’ for the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister to provide impetus to.
b. To foster cooperative federalism through structured support initiatives and mechanisms with the States on a continuous bias, recognizing that strong States make a strong nation.
c. To develop mechanisms to formulate credible plans at the village level and aggregate these progressively at higher level of government.
d. To ensure an areas that are specifically referred to it, that the interests of national security are incorporated in economic strategy and policy.
e. To pay special attention to the sections of our society that may be at risk of not benefitting adequately from economic progress.
f. To design strategic and long term policy and programme frameworks and initiatives, and monitor their progress and their efficacy. The lessons learnt through monitoring and feedback will be used for making innovative improvements, including necessary mid-course corrections.
g. To provide advice and encourage partnerships between key stakeholders and national and international like-minded Think Tanks, as well as educational and policy research institutions.
h. To create a knowledge, innovation and entrepreneurial support system through a collaborative community of national and international experts, practitioners and other partners.
i. To offer a platform for resolution of inter-sectoral and inter-departmental issues in order to accelerate the implementation of the development agenda.
j. To maintain a state-of-the-art Resource Centre, be a repository of research on good governance and best practices in sustainable and equitable development as well as help their dissemination to stake holders.
k. To actively monitor and evaluate the implementation of programme and initiatives, including the identification of the needed resources so as to strengthen the probability of success and scope of delivery.
l. To focus on technology upgradation and capacity building for implementation of programmes and initiatives.
m. To undertake other activities as may be necessary in order to further the execution of the national development agenda, and the objectives mentioned above.
13. The NITI Aayog will comprise the following:
a. Prime Minister of India as the Chairperson
b. Governing Council comprising the Chief Ministers of all the States and Lt. Governors of Union Territories.
c. Regional Councils will be formed to address specific issues and contingencies impacting more than one state or a region. These will be formed for a specific tenure. The Regional Councils will be convened by the Prime Minister and will comprise of the Chief Ministers of States and Lt. Governors of Union Territories to the region. These will be chaired by the Chairperson of the NITI Aayog or his nominee.
d. Experts, specialists and practitioners with relevant domain knowledge as special invitees nominated by the Prime Minister.
e. The full-time organizational framework will comprise of, in addition to the Prime Minister as the Chairperson:
i Vice Chairperson: To be appointed by the Prime Minister
ii Members: Full-time
iii Part-time members: Maximum of 2 from leading universities research organisations and other relevant institutions in an ex-officio capacity. Part time members will be on a rotational basis.
iv Ex Officio members: Maximum of 4 members of the Union Council of Ministers to be nominated by the Prime Minister
v Chief Executive Officer: To be appointed by the Prime Minister for a fixed tenure, in the rank of Secretary in the Government of India.
vi Secretariat as deemed necessary
14. Swami Vivekananda said “Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life – think it, dream of it, live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success.” Through its commitment to a cooperative federalism, promotion of citizen engagement, egalitarian access to opportunity, participative and adaptive governance and increasing use of technology, the NITI Aayog will seek to provide a critical directional and strategic input into the development process. This, along with being the incubator of ideas for development, will be the core mission of NITI Aayog.
15. The Resolution shall come into force and shall be deemed to have come into force with effect from the 1st day of January, 2015 and ResolutionNo.1-P(C)/50 dated the 15th March, 1950 shall stand superseded with effect from the date of coming into force of this Resolution.
SANJUKTA RAY, Director



ANNEXURE-II
Annexure to Rajya Sabha Unstarred Question No1933, due for answer on 03.07.2019, raised by SHRI P.R. NATARAJANA regarding ESTABLISHMENT OF NITI AAYOG
Major Achievements of NITI Aayog since its inception
NITI Aayog, established in January 2015, as a successor to the Planning Commission, is one of Indian democracy’s youngest institutions. As a dedicated Think Tank of the Government, NITI Aayog is expected to carry out this ‘directional’ role, strategically charting the future of the nation, through specialized inputs and with active involvement of States. It fosters cooperative federalism through structured support and policy guidance to the States on a continuous basis.
NITI Aayog, in its fifth year, continues the work of transforming the policy making arena and move towards a resurgent India. The Some of its key achievements in this direction are detailed hereunder:
1. Strategy for New India @75: In a departure from the six-decade old practice of 5 year and annual plans, NITI Aayog launched the 3 year action plan, the 7 year strategy document envisioning New India by 2022, and is working on the 15 year vision document. This ensures better alignment of development strategy with the fast-changing reality of our country by bringing in innovation, enterprise and efficient management together at the core of policy formulation to achieve the twin aims of economic transformation and inclusive growth. NITI has defined clear objectives to be achieved and made policy recommendations covering areas of drivers of growth, infrastructure, inclusion and governance.
2. Aspirational District Programme: The on-going ‘Aspirational district Programme launched by NITI Aayog under which 112 backward districts in 27 States have been taken up for rapid transformation in key sectors has emerged as an innovative platform for accelerating development in difficult areas. Launched on January 5, 2018 by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, districts are competing among each other in 49 indicators to excel in provision of public services that affects quality of life as well as economic productivity of common citizens. This unique initiative has been fully supported by the Central Ministries and the State Governments. Due to such team efforts, districts have made significant progress in key sectors viz. Health, nutrition, education, agriculture and water resources, financial inclusion and skill development and creation of basic infrastructure.
Since progress in these sectors is closely related to attainment of SDGs, this initiative has emerged as an important programme to serve the twin objective of inclusive development and attainment of SDGs.
3. Sustainable Development Goals: With the objective of monitoring the progress of SDGs in the country, NITI took the lead in developing the SDG India index & Dashboard in 2018, which comprehensively documents and measures the progress made by States/UTs towards various SDG targets by ranking them on key SDG indicators across the Global Goals. This index aligns the 17 SDGs with our National Development Agenda and provides the first holistic strategy to measure progress on socio-economic environmental parameters of development. The SDG India Index, which is the first baseline report on SDGs in the country, has enabled States/UTs to benchmark their progress relative to others and identify priority areas. The consultations for the second version of the SDG Index are underway.

4. Poshan Abhiyaan- The National Nutrition Mission and the Poshan Abhiyan, launched in 2018, India’s flagship programme to improve nutritional outcomes for children, women and mothers, through a multi-pronged strategy of inter-sectoral convergence for intensified service delivery, real-time monitoring of nutritional status of women and children, and creating a Jan Andolan to raise awareness and synergize efforts, is being effectively steered by NITI Aayog with all key stakeholders.
The activities in Poshan Abhiyan focus on Social Behavioural Change and Communication (SBCC). The broad themes are: antenatal care, optimal breastfeeding (early and exclusive), complementary feeding, anaemia, growth monitoring, girls’ - education, diet, right age of marriage, hygiene and sanitation, eating healthy - food fortification. A dedicated Poshan Maah has given a major impetus to the Abhiyaan as 30.6 Crore people were reached in 30 days. Additionally, on similar lines Poshan Pakhwada was observed during 8th March, 2019 to 22nd March, 2019 to mark the one year anniversary of POSHAN Abhiyaan. Poshan Pakhwada has been successful in taking forward the Jan Andolan by reaching around 45 crore people.
5. Atal Innovation Mission: Furthering its mandate of creating a robust knowledge, innovation and entrepreneurial support system through a collaborative community of experts and practitioners, NITI’s flagship initiative- AIM continues to spread its work towards establishing an integrated chain of innovation-incubation-entrepreneurship at school, university and industry levels, by linking NGOs, venture capital and private industries in the process. AIM, with 3020 Atal Tinkering Labs being established at school level, 47 Atal Incubators at university and institutional levels, 24 Atal India Challenges launched to stimulate product innovation, is fast creating a collaborative network of institutions-mentors-industry in the country.
6. Artificial Intelligence: Pursuant to the announcement made in the Budget 2018 –2019 and recognizing the potential of Artificial Intelligence to transform economies along with the need to strategize technology to deliver better services to its 1.33 billion citizens, NITI worked on its mandate and released a discussion paper on National Strategy for AI in 2018. Titled ‘AI For All’, the strategy focuses on sectors with the greatest need for public goods such as agriculture, healthcare, education, smart cities, and mobility. Moreover, the role of the government in promoting these solutions has been clearly delineated in terms of promoting research, skilling, accelerating adoption of AI and the role of ethics in AI. Projects are being pursued for promoting dynamic content in regional Indian languages, precision agriculture and developing the world’s largest bio-bank of cancer images. This roadmap aims to leverage the transformational effects of AI, block-chain and Internet of Things in three key sectors of Education, Healthcare and Agriculture.
7. Driving Clean Mobility: Working on India’s commitment to move from the conventional mobility model to a sustainable and seamless mobility ecosystem, “MOVE” - India’s first Global Mobility Summit was organized by NITI Aayog so as to bring focus on transforming the mobility paradigm in India.
To ensure a seamless travel across metros and other transport systems in addition to retail shopping and purchases, the Government of India came out with the National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) Program and the One Nation One Card was launched in 2019. NITI Aayog played a key role in finalising modalities of NCMC architecture through Inter Ministerial and Industry consultation meetings.
In addition, Government has undertaken a series of measures to move towards electric vehicles, such as developing the Charging Infrastructure Policy which permits private charging at residences / offices, regulatory amendments to the Motor Vehicles Act, while taking steps to promote manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries. The National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage, housed in NITI Aayog, has been constituted to launch concerted efforts to spearhead electric mobility by recommending key policy guidelines to drive clean, connected, shared, sustainable and holistic mobility and storage initiatives.
8. The Challenge of Water: Water and its management is one of our biggest challenges. Currently, 600 million Indians face high to extreme water stress. Millions of lives and livelihoods are under threat due to the crisis. Several States have taken path breaking measures to efficiently manage water. In view of the limitations on availability of water resources and using the increasing demand for water, sustainable management of water resources has acquired critical importance. The Composite Water Management Index developed by NITI Aayog challenges States/UTs to improve their water management techniques as this is directly linked to agricultural prosperity.
9. Competitive Federalism: NITI was constituted to actualize the goal of competitive and cooperative federalism among States. To drive the spirit of competition among States/UTs, NITI has sought to establish a structure of evidence based policy making by devising robust mechanism for monitoring and evaluation of outcomes in key sectors of governance. The Output-Outcome Monitoring Framework developed by NITI Aayog has created a paradigm shift from outlays to outcome based governance for improved evidence-based policy-making. Focusing on effective management and better outcomes backed by data analysis, NITI has developed a number of social indices and dashboards. The Water, Health and SDG indices developed by NITI Aayog rank States/UTs in the spirit of competitive federalism.
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