No special assistance to poor states will increase regional disparities: Bihar Finance Minister
The Hindu
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently said the Finance Commission has recommended to the Centre that no State will be accorded special status for financial assistance
Bihar Finance Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary said that if the poor States are not given special assistance by the Centre then regional disparities are bound to increase in the country.
He made the comment on February 18 referring to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's statement that the Finance Commission has made a recommendation to the Centre, in which it said that no State will be accorded the special status.
"I don't know how the Union Finance minister made such a statement. When the NITI Aayog talks about special assistance to the poorest States, the comment of the Union Finance Minister will certainly increase regional disparities," Mr. Choudhary told PTI.
He said Bihar is the most deserving State that needs special financial assistance from the Centre.
Bihar's growth is better than the national average but it is among the poorest States in the country, he added.
"NITI Aayog has admitted that Bihar made tremendous progress across multiple sectors in the last decade, but owing to its weak base, it may take some more time to catch up with the others. This is the reason that we have been demanding special assistance from the Centre," Mr. Choudhary said.
The special category status was introduced in 1969 to benefit certain backward States having hilly terrains, strategic international borders and economic and infrastructural backwardness.
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