Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Sunday cautioned against "haste" in restructuring Planning Commission and voiced anguish over the manner in which the meeting was called as if states have "merely to put their stamp" on the Centre's agenda.
He demanded that a meeting of the National Development Council be called to consult the states meaningfully and take a holistic view on the issue and noted as a think tank, the proposed institution should have the capabilities to support the ministries and states with knowledge of innovations and best practices of the world.
Manjhi, who heads a Janta Dal-United government in the state supported by Congress and RJD, said, "The manner in which this meeting has been convened, its agenda and format, is pointing to the fact that you have already made up your mind on the subject and the states are here, merely to put their stamp on it".
Participating in the meeting called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Chief Ministers on the issue of renaming and restructuring the plan panel, he said that the speech of the Prime Minister on Independence Day about re-thinking on the Planning Commission has given rise to the public perception that the government has decided to give a "go-bye to the process of planning" in this country and that the growth and development in this country will be led by the market forces and the capitalists.
"I would request the Prime Minister to take no decision in haste without due diligence and deliberation. The meeting of the National Development Council should be convened to discuss the matter and take a holistic view on the same.
"If states are to be consulted meaningfully then the proposed structure and modalities should be duly circulated for firming up of their view on the matter. Final view should be taken after considering the observations of all stakeholders," Manjhi said .
He said that though the Prime Minister has talked about strengthening the federal structure and increased, active participation of the states in the formulation of national policies as equal partners and in their effective implementation, nothing substantial has been done to confirm these views.
"I am of the view that to deliberate on this important issue, the appropriate forum would have been the National Development Council. "Furthermore it would have been more fruitful and productive if the alternative structure and modalities that are being proposed could have been circulated beforehand to the states, so that they could have firmed up their views on the issue," he added.
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