Parliamentary panel to quiz Niti Aayog on backward area development

New Delhi: Niti Aayog is likely to be questioned by a Parliamentary panel on the role it has played to promote welfare of tribals and in augmenting development work in the backward regions of the country.

The Standing Committee on Finance, headed by Congress leader Veerappa Moily, will also seek oral evidence from the Ministries of Corporate Affairs, Statistics and Programme Implementation with regard to demands for grants for 2017-18.

According to sources, the Committee has already sent a questionnaire to Niti Aayog asking it what role it has played for the development of backward regions.

The Committee also enquired Aayog why adequate allocation for encouraging economic activities in the backward region and for the welfare of tribals have not been made by the government over the years.

Niti Aayog is likely to be represented by its CEO Amitabh Kant.

Other senior officials of the Aayog are also likely to attend the meeting.

Senior officials from Ministry of Corporate Affairs and Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation will also be attending tomorrow’s meeting.

As an usual practice, the demand for grants of different ministries are discussed by the respective Standing Committees during the recess period and placed before Parliament for approval in the second half of Budget session beginning March 9.

This year, the government had advanced the presentation of Budget by a month to ensure that all allocations ti the ministries are made for 2017-18 by April 1, the beginning of the new fiscal.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh are also members of the committee.

Socialist-era Planning Commission was replaced by government think tank Niti Aayog from January 1, 2015. The Aayog is headed by the Prime Minister and have all Chief Ministers as members.