Citing various macroeconomic parameters that are doing pretty well, India's G20 Sherpa and former CEO of Niti Aayog Amitabh Kant projected that the country is all set to overtake Japan as 4th largest economy in the world by 2025. The size of India's GDP is currently ranked 5th, after the US, China, Germany, and Japan. It overtook the UK in 2022.
In the first meeting of NITI Aayog on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with eminent economists and experts across sectors along with the existing members of the newly constituted body.
Speaking at the first Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan Memorial Lecture at Jamia Millia Islamia University, Amitabh Kant said, "The eastern part of India, particularly states like Bihar, UP, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, is keeping India backward, especially on social indicators. While we have improved on ease of doing business, we have remained backward on human development index. We are still 131 out of 188 countries in HDI."
'Healthcare is not an industry.' 'The government is only encouraging insurance as they are not able to provide healthcare to people.' 'Opening new medical colleges is not what is needed.' 'You have to invest in public sector hospitals.' 'You cannot hand over healthcare to the private industry.'
Granting SCS to the state has been a long-pending demand of the JD-U supremo and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, whose Bihar cabinet had even passed a resolution last year requesting the Centre to grant SCS to the state.
'There is also a possibility that Andhra Pradesh may demand a similar package. But as of now, we are only working on a package for Bihar.'
In a move to deepen manufacturing in electronics in India, the Centre is targeting 35-40 per cent value-addition through the yet-to-be launched production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for electronics components, sources in the government
NITI Aayog was set up as a think-tank for the Centre and states on January 1 replacing over six-decade old Planning Commission.
India needs to grow at an annual rate of 9-10 per cent for around three decades and constant innovations to become a $35 trillion economy by 2047, India's G-20 Sherpa and former NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said on Sunday. "We are the fifth largest economy in the world and by 2027 we will surpass Japan and Germany to become the third largest economy in the world. "And our aim is that by the time we turn 100 in 2047, India should be a $35 trillion economy," Kant said while addressing a session at Mumbai Tech Week (MTW) hosted by Tech Entrepreneurs Association Mumbai (TEAM).
The central government's Great Nicobar development project, proposed around an unprecedented transhipment port, will be executed to keep environmental impact minimal, and is essential as it is of national importance, the government has said amid calls to abort the controversial project due to ecological concerns, the Centre said in an official statement.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is looking to monetise 33 stretches of national highways during the current financial year (FY25) through its toll operate transfer (TOT) and infrastructure investment trust (Invit). These stretches include Lucknow-Aligarh, Kanpur-Ayodhya-Gorakhpur, and Bareilly-Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh, Gurugram-Kotputli-Jaipur bypass and Jaipur-Kishangarh in Rajasthan, Panikoili-Rimuli in Odisha, Chennai Bypass in Tamil Nadu, and Muzaffarpur-Darbhanga-Purnia highway in Bihar. Cumulatively, the 33 stretches, spanning 2,741 kilometres (km) earned approximately Rs 5,000 crore revenue in FY24.
Representatives from four states including Maharashtra and Karnataka will also be members of the panel.
After topping it for two consecutive years, Gujarat slipped three places on the NITI Aayog's Export Preparedness Index (EPI) for 2022, as Tamil Nadu emerged as the most export-ready state, the central think tank said in its report released on Monday. In a continuing trend, coastal states were found to have the most robust export infrastructure, which officials attributed to the integration of maritime trade into the core of their economies. Maharashtra and Karnataka retained their positions -- second and third, respectively; Haryana was ranked first among landlocked states and fifth overall.
Government departments have been tasked with identifying major goals, which will include annual targets from the financial year 2024-2025 to 2028-2029.
Bibek Debroy raised seven questions about the new institution.
The 14-member task-force will develop a working definition of poverty.
Aayog to present its performance review - since its existence - before the governing council
NITI Aayog has not said what the reasons were for having achieved or not having achieved what was sought to be achieved, or what lessons can be learned for the future, points out Aakar Patel.
In a communication sent to Kumar, the EC asked him to be cautious in future while making statements.
NITI Aayog wants the prime minister's flagship initiative should focus on labour-intensive sectors and policies that impede their growth to get special attention.
An official announcement to this effect would be made next week. The vice-chairman would be of Cabinet rank.
Milk supplies could improve with the monsoon, provided the rains are not excessive.
Unless we bring about substantive changes, we cannot expect to alter the current situation where low-productivity and low-wage jobs dominate the landscape, the government think-tank observes.
The NITI Aayog's vice-chairman's charge holds ground.
While the government has not made the report public, sources said the panel had recommended a sharp cut in all taxes on the gold business, including import duty and goods and services tax which amounts to over 13%.
There are reports that the government will soon cut income taxes by about Rs 50,000 crore to boost consumption.
Prime Minister Modi, I suggest that, instead, you distribute about one lakh crore rupees per year to the 80 crore poor, which will boost both consumption and economic growth, suggests Kalyan Singhal, McCurdy Professor of Business at the University of Baltimore.
NITI Aayog has a dual role of a monitor and advisor.
Under the new methodology, the base year has been changed from 2004-05 to 2011-12 and also in conformity with the international practice, the GDP is now measured at market prices.
'Union Budgets are often used as political instruments and that was the intention of this government too.' 'But while the exercise has settled two fronts, it has left open several others and this has the potential to aggravate with time,' predicts Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
The country's present growth rate is 7.6% and its economy is $1.7 trillion.
Over the past few days, deaths due to heat stroke have been reported from different parts of the country including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Odisha.
All elections in India should happen in a free, fair and synchronised manner to ensure minimum "campaign mode" disruption to governance, the government think tank said in its report released recently.
Major Gogoi thought like Chanakya when he tied a Kashmiri man on an army jeep to keep the stone pelters at bay, argues Rajeev Sharma.
'The Congress in the past backed the demand, but will not support it now since the SP opposes any division of UP.'
Karnataka, Telangana and Haryana have been ranked as the top three states among major states in Niti Aayog's third innovation index. Niti Aayog's India Innovation index 2021 examines innovation capacities and ecosystems at the sub-national level. The index, released by Niti Aayog's Vice Chairman Suman Bery in the presence of chief executive officer Parameswaran Iyer on Thursday, has been developed on the lines of the Global Innovation Index. States and Union Territories were divided into '17 Major States', '10 North-East and Hill States', and '9 Union Territories and City States', for effectively comparing their performance.
The second meeting of the NITI Aayog's governing council, was, however, attended by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Nine cases have been detected from Maharashtra, eight from Karnataka, six from Kerala, four from Tamil Nadu and two from Telangana, they added.
'Our competitiveness with China is very important.' 'If the exchange rate depreciates, it is good for us because it helps in our competitiveness.'
Nearly half a century later, Shyam Benegal's Manthan will be showcased in restored print at this year's Cannes Film Festival. It still serves as a much-needed reminder of setting aside differences in the favour of combined progress and profit, notes Sukanya Verma.
Debroy worked as a consultant in the Department of Economic Affairs in Finance Ministry.
