NATIONAL
NEW DELHI, June 13, 2014
Updated: June 13, 2014 20:52 IST
No special category status for Seemandhra: plan panel
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- PTI
PTI
In this March 5, 2014 file photo, Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia is seen with with Rajya Sabha member T Subbarami Reddy who gave a representation for special package to Seemandhra, in New Delhi.
TOPICS
Start Download Now - Convert From Doc to PDF, PDF to Doc Simply With The Free On-line App!www.fromdoctopdf.com
PTI
In this March 5, 2014 file photo, Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia is seen with with Rajya Sabha member T Subbarami Reddy who gave a representation for special package to Seemandhra, in New Delhi.
TOPICS
India
Andhra Pradesh
interior policy
interior policy
planning inquiries
Former PM Manmohan Singh had announced in the Rajya Sabha on February 21 that special category status would be extended to Seemandhra for five years.
The residual Andhra Pradesh, known as Seemandhra, can’t be accorded the status of special category State to provide extra Central aid under the current norms, the Planning Commission has said.
“Andhra Pradesh (Seemandhra) does not meet National Development Council criteria (for special category state),” the Commission said in its presentation to Planning Minister Inderjit Singh Rao.
This point is significant because the Union Cabinet headed by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on March 2 had directed the Commission to accord special category status to the successor of Andhra Pradesh (Seemandhra) for five years.
Singh had even announced in the Rajya Sabha on February 21 that special category status would be extended to Seemandhra for five years.
Andhra Pradesh has been recently bifurcated into two States - Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. There are demands for according special category status (SCS) from States including Bihar, Rajasthan, Odisha and Jharkhand.
In case of Bihar, an inter ministerial group has said that the State is not eligible to get SCS based on existing criteria. However government is yet to take a decision on Bihar’s demand.
The Commission, however, has intimated to Rajasthan, Odisha and Jharkhand that they are eligible for getting SCS as per the criteria.
About according SCS to Seemandhra, the Commission pointed out to the Minister that any such proposal would have to be endorsed by the country’s apex planning body National Development Council (NDC) headed by the Prime Minister with Cabinet Ministers and all Chief Ministers on its board.
As per the Gadgil—Mukherjee formula for devolution of Central assistance for state plans, 30 per cent of the total funds is earmarked for Special Category States.
As against the composition of Central assistance of 30 per cent grant and 70 per cent loan for major States, special category states receive 90 per cent plan assistance as grant and just 10 per cent as loan.
The special category status to various States in accorded by the NDC based on consideration of a set criteria.
The criteria include hilly and difficult terrain; low population density and or sizeable share of tribal population; strategic location along borders with neighbouring countries; economic and infrastructure backwardness and non—viable nature of state finances.
At present, the existing 11 special category status States are Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Uttarakhand, Nagaland, Tripura, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Sikkim.
The residual Andhra Pradesh, known as Seemandhra, can’t be accorded the status of special category State to provide extra Central aid under the current norms, the Planning Commission has said.
“Andhra Pradesh (Seemandhra) does not meet National Development Council criteria (for special category state),” the Commission said in its presentation to Planning Minister Inderjit Singh Rao.
This point is significant because the Union Cabinet headed by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on March 2 had directed the Commission to accord special category status to the successor of Andhra Pradesh (Seemandhra) for five years.
Singh had even announced in the Rajya Sabha on February 21 that special category status would be extended to Seemandhra for five years.
Andhra Pradesh has been recently bifurcated into two States - Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. There are demands for according special category status (SCS) from States including Bihar, Rajasthan, Odisha and Jharkhand.
In case of Bihar, an inter ministerial group has said that the State is not eligible to get SCS based on existing criteria. However government is yet to take a decision on Bihar’s demand.
The Commission, however, has intimated to Rajasthan, Odisha and Jharkhand that they are eligible for getting SCS as per the criteria.
About according SCS to Seemandhra, the Commission pointed out to the Minister that any such proposal would have to be endorsed by the country’s apex planning body National Development Council (NDC) headed by the Prime Minister with Cabinet Ministers and all Chief Ministers on its board.
As per the Gadgil—Mukherjee formula for devolution of Central assistance for state plans, 30 per cent of the total funds is earmarked for Special Category States.
As against the composition of Central assistance of 30 per cent grant and 70 per cent loan for major States, special category states receive 90 per cent plan assistance as grant and just 10 per cent as loan.
The special category status to various States in accorded by the NDC based on consideration of a set criteria.
The criteria include hilly and difficult terrain; low population density and or sizeable share of tribal population; strategic location along borders with neighbouring countries; economic and infrastructure backwardness and non—viable nature of state finances.
At present, the existing 11 special category status States are Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Uttarakhand, Nagaland, Tripura, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Sikkim.
Andhra Pradesh's Endless Wait for Special Status
By Express News Service
Published: 28th August 2014 06:00 AM
Last Updated: 28th August 2014 03:08 AM
HYDERABAD: Special Category Status (SCS) for Andhra Pradesh has so far remained a pie in the sky. This is causing some degree of disquiet among the AP leaders though they have not lost hope yet because it was the BJP which had fought for it in both Houses of Parliament during the fag-end of UPA-II.
Though then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made an announcement in Parliament on according SCS for five years, it remained a promise only, causing discomfiture to the leaders of Andhra Pradesh. The Manmohan Singh cabinet in March this year also took a decision to this effect and asked the Planning Commission to do it but that is where the things stand as of now.
In his Independence Day message, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Planning Commission would be disbanded and a new institution would be ushered in to cater to the aspirations of 21st century India and strengthen participation of states, the ruling Telugu Desam Party is wondering how and in what shape SCS would come for Andhra Pradesh.
“When Chandrababu Naidu met the Prime Minister recently, at no stage was there any room for doubt. He was very much in favour of according SCS,” a senior TDP functionary said.
The delay in according SCS is on account of the proposal to disband the Planning Commission. “But a brain-storming session is going on as to how to keep the promise of according SCS to AP since it was promised by a Prime Minister on the floor of Parliament at the time of the debate on the bifurcation Act. We are sure of getting the status since it was the BJP which fought for SCS,” the TDP leader said.
The AP government hopes that Narendra Modi would hold ground even if Telangana state wants similar status or for that matter if Tamil Nadu demands that such a status should not be given to AP. “The Centre is not politically weak to acquiesce to the demands of other states on conferring SCS to AP. It has made a commitment and it will honour it,” the functionary said.
Though the Planning Commission will be disbanded and an alternative institution is brought in, according SCS is likely to be entrusted to another institution. The debate at present is which organ of the government should do it - whether it is the Finance Ministry or Planning and Programme Implementation Department.
The AP government is also hopeful that endorsement of National Development Council (NDC) would be done away with since Planning Commission would not be there anymore. If NDC’s endorsement is not required, the work becomes simpler.
Also the government hopes that the eligibility criteria would undergo a sea-change. At present, the Planning Commission clears SCS proposal for states if a State has hilly and difficult terrain, significant tribal population, backward in infrastructure, proximity to borders and low population density.
Who is special
SCS to a State is Granted if it has:
- Hilly and difficult terrain
- Significant tribal population
- Backward in infrastructure
- Proximity to borders with neigbouring countries
- Low population density
90% in the Form of Grant
SCS entails a State to get 90 per cent of the Centre’s devolutions in the form of grant and only 10 per cent as loan. For other states, 30 per cent comes as a grant and the rest as loan. Of the total funds meant for states, 30 per cent is reserved for SCS states.
- Though delay in according SCS is disquieting, AP feels it would soon be through though Planning Commission is being disbanded
- AP leaders have reason to believe that SCS would be delinked from the alternative institution proposed in place of plan panel
- The task likely to be entrusted either to finance ministry or department of planning and programme implementation
- 11 states like Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Assam, Uttarakhand presently enjoy SCS
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