TAG: GS 2: POLITY
THE CONTEXT: The government has reconstituted the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog).
EXPLANATION:
- This reconstitution involves incorporating 15 Union ministers, including those from NDA allies, either as ex-officio members or special invitees.
- This move aims to enhance the think-tank’s effectiveness in driving India’s policy and development agenda.
Key Positions and Members
- Prime Minister continues to serve as the chairperson of NITI Aayog.
- Economist Suman K Bery retains his position as the vice-chairperson, ensuring continuity in the institution’s strategic vision and operational leadership.
- The full-time members, who play a crucial role in shaping the think-tank’s policies and initiatives, include:
- V K Saraswat: A prominent scientist; Ramesh Chand: An agricultural economist; V K Paul: A noted paediatrician; Arvind Virmani: A distinguished macroeconomist.
- Four key Union Ministers have been designated as ex-officio members, ensuring that pivotal ministries have a direct role in the decision-making processes:
- Rajnath Singh: Minister of Defence, Amit Shah: Minister of Home Affairs, Shivraj Singh Chouhan: Minister of Agriculture, Nirmala Sitharaman: Minister of Finance.
- The reconstitution also includes ministers from NDA partner parties, ensuring a collaborative approach across political lines.
Recent Developments and Strategic Initiatives
- NITI Aayog has been instrumental in formulating policies that address various aspects of national development, including health, education, infrastructure, and economic reforms.
- The reconstitution aims to strengthen these efforts by involving a broader spectrum of ministers.
- The reconstituted NITI Aayog aims to foster a more inclusive and cooperative federal structure by including ministers from diverse political backgrounds.
- This approach ensures that different regions and political perspectives contribute to the national development agenda.
NITI Aayog
- NITI Aayog is the apex public policy think tank of the Government of India, established in 2015 to replace the erstwhile Planning Commission.
- Mandate and Objectives
- NITI Aayog is the nodal agency tasked with catalyzing economic development and fostering cooperative federalism in India.
- It aims to move away from the Planning Commission’s “one-size-fits-all” approach and towards a more decentralized, bottom-up approach to policy-making.
- Structure and Composition
- The Prime Minister of India is the ex-officio Chairperson of NITI Aayog.
- It has a Governing Council composed of all Chief Ministers and Lt. Governors, a full-time organizational framework with a Vice-Chairperson, full-time and part-time members, and a CEO.
- The current Vice-Chairperson is Suman Bery, and the CEO is B.V.R. Subrahmanyam.
- Key Initiatives
- NITI Aayog has launched initiatives like the Aspirational Districts Programme, the National Data and Analytics Platform, and the Women Entrepreneurship Platform.
- It has also started the “NITI Lectures: Transforming India” series, inviting global experts to share their knowledge and experience with Indian policymakers.
- Reconstitution in 2024
- In July 2024, the BJP government reconstituted the NITI Aayog, adding 15 Union Ministers as ex-officio members or special invitees from NDA allies.