12 APRIL 2016

Ø  NITI Aayog, the government’s policy think tank, is working on a sector-based medium-term planning framework, Union Finance Secretary Ratan P. Watal told a meeting of state finance secretaries. The new planning framework could replace five-year plans, the last of which is set to end in 2016—17, Mr. Watal said. It was possible to synchronise with the finance commission cycle, the financial approval of schemes and projects of both the central and state governments, he said. The current financial year, 2016-17, is the last year of the 12th five-year plan. With the Planning Commission scrapped, the process for formulating a 13th five-year plan government has not been initiated, as a consequence of which the era of five-year plans is set to end in India this year. The finance secretaries meeting was held to assess the impact on the evolution of public financial systems at the central and the state levels following the discontinuation of the five-year plans.