Speed Post News Network
New Delhi : PM Narendra Modi on April 23, 2017, called upon the state governments to work with the Union Government, as “Team India,” to build the India of the dreams of our freedom fighters by 2022, the 75th anniversary of independence.
Delivering the closing remarks at the third meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog, the PM urged the states, local governments and all Government and Non-Government organizations to decide goals for 2022, and work in mission mode towards achieving them, according to a PIB release.
Describing the discussions at April 23 meeting as constructive, the PM said the circulated vision document is a draft, and all suggestions given by the Chief Ministers will be taken into account before finalizing it. He laid emphasis on good governance and said it leads to optimum utilization of resources even when resources are less than desired, according to PIB release.
PM Modi noted that the theme of regional imbalance was raised by a number of Chief Ministers. He agreed that this has to be addressed on priority, both nationally and within states. He also seconded the J&K Chief Minister’s suggestion that states should take interest in the students from her state who are studying in other states. The PM urged the states to reach out to these students from time to time.
The Prime Minister reiterated that the legislative arrangements at the state-level for GST should be put in place without delay. He called upon states to use the GeM platform – Government e-Marketplace, to reduce corruption and increase transparency in government procurement. He said the use of technologies such as BHIM and Aadhaar would result in significant savings for the states.
The Prime Minister urged states to join the `Ek-Bharat, Shresth Bharat’ initiative, which was launched on Sardar Patel’s birth anniversary last year. He said India’s richness of culture and heritage should no longer be ignored.
The Prime Minister said a constructive discussion has begun on the subject of holding Union and State elections simultaneously. The Prime Minister said that for long, India had suffered from economic and political mismanagement. He said that because of poor time management, many good initiatives and schemes had failed to deliver the anticipated results. He emphasized on the need to develop robust arrangements that could function amidst diversity.