Govt of India has changed the name of Planning Commision to NITI Aayog. NITI stand for National Institution of Transforming India. It can be considered as replacement of Planning Commission by NITI Aayog.

Press Release by Govt. is as follows:

2. The Planning Commission was set up on the 15^th of March, 1950 through a Cabinet Resolution.   Nearly 65 years 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:

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:

1. 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.

2. 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.

3. 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)”.

4. 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.

5. 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.

6. 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 inter-linkages 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.

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 us 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.

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:

1. 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’ for the Prime Minister and the Chief Ministers to provide impetus to.

2. 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.

3. To develop mechanisms to formulate credible plans at the village level and aggregate these progressively at higher levels of government.

4. To ensure, on areas that are specifically referred to it, that the interests of national security are incorporated in economic strategy and policy.

5. To pay special attention to the sections of our society that may be at risk of not benefitting adequately from economic progress.  

6. 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.

7. 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.

8. To create a knowledge, innovation and entrepreneurial support system through a collaborative community of national and international experts, practitioners and other partners.

9. To offer a platform for resolution of inter-sectoral and inter-departmental issues in order to accelerate the implementation of the development agenda.

10. 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.

11. 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.

12. To focus on technology upgradation and capacity building for implementation of programmes and initiatives.

13. 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:

1. Prime Minister of India as the Chairperson

2. Governing Council comprising the Chief Ministers of all the States and Lt. Governors of Union Territories

3. 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 specified 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 in the region.   These will be chaired by the   Chairperson of the NITI Aayog or his nominee.

4. Experts, specialists and practitioners with relevant domain knowledge as special invitees nominated by the Prime Minister

5. The full-time organizational framework will comprise of, in addition to the Prime Minister as the Chairperson:

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.