By TIOL News Service

NEW DELHI, MAY 26, 2023: NITI Aayog will be organising its 8th Governing Council Meeting on the theme of 'Viksit Bharat @ 2047: Role of Team India' on May 27, 2023, at the new Convention Centre in Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.

Eight prominent themes will be discussed during the day-long Meeting including (i) Viksit Bharat@2047, (ii) Thrust on MSMEs, (iii) Infrastructure and Investments, (iv) Minimising Compliances, (v) Women Empowerment, (vi) Health and Nutrition, (vii) Skill Development, and (viii) Gati Shakti for area development and social infrastructure.

The Meeting will see the participation of Chief Ministers/Lt. Governors of all States and Union Territories, Union Ministers as ex-officio Members, and the Vice Chairman and Members of NITI Aayog. As Chairman of NITI Aayog, the Prime Minister will preside over the meeting.

As a preparatory prelude to the 8th Governing Council Meeting, the 2nd Chief Secretaries Conference was held in January 2023 where these themes were extensively discussed. Wide-ranging stakeholder consultations and brainstorming sessions with subject experts, academia and practitioners were held prior to the Conference in order to gain well-rounded grassroot-level perspectives. The 2nd Chief Secretaries Conference, attended by the Prime Minister, brought together select Secretaries from the Government of India and Chief Secretaries from all States/UTs who proactively participated by sharing thematic best practices and policy insights.

As the world's fifth largest economy and the most populous nation, India is at a stage in its economic development trajectory where it can achieve accelerated growth over the next 25 years. In this context, the 8 th Governing Council Meeting provides an opportunity to create a roadmap for Viksit Bharat by 2047 in which Centre and States can work together as Team India. This will play an important role in the international context as India's socioeconomic growth and transformation can have a positive and multiplier effect on the world at large.

This 8th Governing Council Meeting is also being held in the backdrop of India's G20 Presidency. India's G20 motto 'One Earth, One Family, One Future' conveys its civilisational values and its vision of the role of each country in creating the future of our planet. The emerging world has immense hopes on India's ability to provide values-based leadership and its capacity to deliver development at scale. The Centre and States have played a significant role in achieving this distinctive development trajectory.

India's growth is closely interlinked with the growth of States. As mentioned by the Prime Minister in his 76 th Independence Day address, 'When our States grow, India grows'. This will be the guiding spirit of India's inclusive and sustainable vision for the next quarter century. In order to achieve this vision, the 8 th Governing Council Meeting would provide a platform for strengthening Centre-State cooperation and forging partnerships for achieving the goal of Viksit Bharat @ 2047.