SME Times News Bureau | 16 Apr, 2018
Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday said Odisha should
not be apprehensive of the performance-oriented parameters set by the
15th Finance Commission.
Pradhan said states performing better in
achieving population stabilisation will get more benefits from the 15th
Finance Commission (FC).
"It seems Odisha Chief Minister has
either not read or not been properly explained about the Terms of
Reference (ToR) of the 15th Finance Commission. The apprehension of the
Chief Minister is baseless as Prime Minister and Finance Minister have
already clarified on the issue," said the Union Minister.
Pradhan clarified that there will be no cut in the allocation to Odisha.
Odisha joined its southern counterparts in opposing the mandate of the ToR of the 15th Finance Commission.
Odisha
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik recently wrote to Prime Minister Narendra
Modi alleging that the terms of reference of the finance commission
departed significantly from the past commissions.
He requested
the Prime Minister to ensure that the commission uses the population
data of the 1971 census instead of that of 2011 while making its
recommendations.
"Instead of giving freedom to the commission to
arrive at its recommendations on resource sharing between the centre and
the states based on the respective needs and after due consultations,
there are leading suggestions in the ToR indicating the overriding
priorities and concerns of the Union government," he said.
Patnaik said that the ToR of the 15th Finance Commission would adversely affect states like Odisha.