Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu today expressed concern over meagre allocation to the North Eastern Council (NEC) and said less allocation will make the council fall short of serving any purpose.
Khandu during a meeting with NEC secretary Ram Muivah here, discussed several pressing issues regarding the council that require urgent attention, an official communique said.
The North Eastern Council is the nodal agency for the economic and social development of the North Eastern Region which consists of the eight states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura.
The NEC allocation substantially decreased from 9th Five Year Plan onwards and since then has remained stagnant.
Pointing out the large gap arising due to meagre resources made available with that of the aspiration of the constituent states, the chief minister informed that demand for funds from constituent states each year has increased and that stood at an average of Rs 4800 crore annually.
He pointed out the need for raise in resource allocation for core areas and for the large projects with inter-state regional character, which is the mandate of NEC.
Khandu further raised concern over declining allocation through non-lapsable central pool of resources (NLCPR) funds.
He said at least 10 per cent of the budget of the Central ministries are to be marked for the North Eastern states.
He pointed that over Rs 15,000 crore of NLCPR funds have accumulated over the years and with the decline in allocation, the development of North East has greatly impacted.
The chief minister also called for strengthening in functioning of NEC secretariat and incentives attached to the posts in NEC to attract more officers to serve on deputation, the communique added.
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