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Accelerate resources to fortify fiscal position, NE states told
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SME Times News Bureau | 18 Jan, 2019
The 15th Finance Commission Chairman N.K. Singh on Thursday suggested
the northeastern states to accelerate resources and revenue to
strengthen fiscal position.
"The northeastern states must
accelerate own resources and revenue to build up sustainable fiscal
situations. Each northeastern state has unique features and challenges,"
Singh told the media.
Accompanied by two other members of the
commission -- Ashok Lahiri (former chief economic adviser) and Anoop
Singh (former Georgetown University professor) -- the Chairman said that
there are huge resources and opportunities in the region, these must be
tapped properly.
N.K. Singh, Former Planning Commission member,
said that the connectivity between the area and rest of the world could
be improved by using the Chittagong sea port, which is just 72km away
from southern Tripura, and the other infrastructure of Bangladesh.
"We
would support these states to face challenges and improve growth
trajectory and would take sympathetic view for their all round growth,"
he emphasised.
To a question over special category tag for the northeastern states, he stressed that this must be continued.
Currently,
the eight hilly states, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and
Uttarakhand have the special category tag, which are getting higher
financial support from the Centre.
Praising the Tripura
government's efforts to make it an "ace-model state", Singh said that
there are potentiality in tourism, agriculture and other sectors.
"With
proper utilisation of the talents of the human resources, qualitative
changes could be done. Bamboo, forest resources and diverse industrial
potentiality could be harnessed properly. We would give a careful look
to the state government's demands, aspiration and vision," he added.
Singh
said that after visiting remaining 12 states including three
northeastern states -- Meghalaya, Mizoram and Sikkim -- Commission would
submit its report to the government this year end for the five-year
period starting April 1, 2020.
The panel was constituted by the Centre government in November 2017.
Singh
and his other members of the commission held meetings with the top
functionaries of Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council,
Panchayati Raj Institutions, urban local bodies, representatives of
various organisations of industries and commerce besides leaders of
recognised political parties.
The Commission on the second day of
its three-day consultation programme on Thursday met the council of
ministers led by Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb and top government
officials led by Chief Secretary Lalit Kumar Gupta.
The
commission members and officials on Thursday visited a giant 726 MW
capacity power plant, set up by the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation
sponsored company -- ONGC Tripura Power Company -- at Palatana in
southern Tripura.
Besides all the northeastern states, the power plant is also supplying electricity to Bangladesh (160 MW).
Tripura is the 17th State of India that the Finance Commission visiting.
An
official of the finance Department of Tripura said that the state
government has demanded at least 50 per cent share in net taxes from the
existing 42 per cent.
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