Action Plan Final PART 1 text - NITI Aayog

1 INDIA. THREE YEAR Action AGENDA. 2017-18 TO 2019-20. Copyright 2017 NITI Aayog Published by NITI Aayog Sansad Marg, New Delhi The Three Year Action Agenda, a NITI Aayog document, is based on extensive discussions with and inputs from the central ministries and State governments. The Governing Council of the NITI Aayog , consisting of the Prime Minister as its Chairperson and several Union Ministers and State Chief Ministers as Members, extensively deliberated on the document in its draft form at its meeting on 23rd April 2017. This Final document incorporates the comments made at the meeting and those received subsequently from Chief Ministers. PREFACE. On 1st January 2015, the National Institution for Transforming India or NITI Aayog came into existence as the government's premier think tank. Subsequently, vide Office Order PMO ID No.

2 360/31/C/38/2014-ES-II dated 09/05/2016 (Annexure 1), the Prime Minister's Office advised the NITI Aayog to prepare Fifteen Year Vision, Seven Year Strategy and Three Year Action Agenda documents. Accordingly, the present document is being published to recommend policy changes and programmes for Action from 2017-18 to 2019-20, the last three years of the Fourteenth Finance Commission. A second document containing the Fifteen Year Vision and Seven Year Strategy is currently under preparation at the NITI Aayog . The Vision, Strategy and Action Agenda exercise represents a departure from the Five Year plan process, followed with a handful of discontinuities until the fiscal year 2016-17. The 12th Five Year plan was the last of these plans. It has been felt that with an increasingly open and liberalized economy, we needed to rethink the tools and approaches to conceptualizing the development process.

3 The proposed shift represents an important step in this direction. The Action Agenda has been prepared as an integral part of the exercise leading to the Vision and Strategy document. It has been fast tracked and released first, keeping in view that with the start of fiscal year 2016-17, it is of immediate relevance for policy implementation. Work on the Vision and Strategy document is already far advanced. The Three Year Action Agenda offers ambitious proposals for policy changes within a relatively short period. It is understood that while some may be fully implemented during the three-year period, implementation of others would continue into the subsequent years. Where relevant, we have included possible actions by the states to complement the efforts of the Centre. For holistic development, all ministries and departments must progress simultaneously and harmoniously.

4 Therefore, as a roadmap for future progress, the Action Agenda attempts to cover nearly all aspects of the economy. Despite this wide coverage, an effort has been made to present all Action points with the utmost clarity. To ensure that the document does not become unduly long, however, we have deliberately refrained from providing the detailed rationale for each proposed Action . Where appropriate and necessary, we propose to undertake this latter task in the Vision and Strategy document. The Action Agenda is the result of the hard work and efforts of a vast number of individuals and institutions. The NITI. Aayog has been lucky to have three world-renowned scholars as its Members: Shri Bibek Debroy, Dr. V. K. Saraswat and Dr. Ramesh Chand. It also has a number of outstanding Advisers leading its work in different areas of policy.

5 Working under the guidance of the Members, the Advisers and their teams prepared the core inputs that formed the backbone of the Final document. I greatly appreciate the contributions of the Members, Advisers and their teams to the Action Agenda. Inputs were also sought and received from State Governments, Union Territories and Ministries of the Central Government. Extensive consultations were held with groups of scientists, economists, journalists, voluntary organisations, industry associations and experts in education, health, culture, transport and other fields. Many outside experts also provided extremely useful written inputs. Annexure 2 at the end of the document lists the outside experts exhaustively with the hope that I have not missed anyone. I sincerely thank the states, union territories, Ministries, outside experts and institutions for the gift of their ideas and time.

6 Shri Amitabh Kant, the Chief Executive Officer of the NITI Aayog , skilfully steered the entire process to its logical conclusion. The task simply could not have been completed without his leadership in navigating and guiding all those involved throughout the process. I am deeply appreciative of the energy and time he generously provided. A dedicated team of six talented young policy analysts, who recently joined the NITI Aayog , worked under my close direction to convert the inputs provided by the Advisers and outside experts into a unified document. They are: Chinmaya Goyal, Atisha Kumar, Urvashi Prasad, Vaibhav Kapoor, Rahul Ahluwalia and Devashish Dhar. This part of the exercise consisted of preparation of different chapters, fitting them into a single whole and revising the draft multiple times.

7 The process also included several discussions lasting hours. Atisha and Chinmaya jointly performed the key functions of coordination and editing of the document throughout the process. It was a real pleasure for me working with this brilliant, energetic and enthusiastic team of young analysts. i Pavithra Rangan oversaw the publication and production of the document. My office staff, headed by Dr. Prem Singh, provided critical logistical support. Prem not only saw to it that all went smoothly but also provided critical intellectual inputs at all stages of the work. In draft form, the Action Agenda was circulated to all members of the Governing Council of the NITI Aayog at its third meeting on 23rd April 2017. Subsequently, several states and their Chief Ministers provided comments on that draft document.

8 A concerted effort has been made to incorporate these inputs as well as the remarks made by the Chief Ministers at the Governing Council meeting in this Final version. It is hoped that the Three Year Action Agenda will help launch a new phase in our journey towards a New India. Arvind Panagariya Vice Chairman New Delhi 1 August 2017. ii Praise for the Action Agenda in the Media The analysis and proposals provided in the Three Year Action Agenda range from the actionable to the aspirational. We shall, in the fullness of time, see how many of its proposals are taken up and implemented. Be that as it may, we believe that its primary contribution will be in serving as a base of knowledge and analysis to support any future discussions on policy reform; it should be welcomed.. Pravin Krishna and Vivek Dahejia, Livemint, 4 May 2017.

9 It must be stated that for the first time, a comprehensive reform agenda has been placed before the Union and State governments for implementation. The report, thus, provides a practitioners' guide to policy reforms.. M. Govinda Rao, Financial Express, 2 May 2017.. The Three Year Action Agenda augurs well for a better India.. Singh, Indian Express, 20 May 2017. There is much value in terms of actionable reforms for the government in the Action Agenda. If the government just focuses on those that create good jobs, the exercise would have been more than worth it.. - R. Jagannathan, Swarajya, 4 May 2017. The Action plan is a mix of corrective measures, new ideas and model proposals and statutes that can be tried elsewhere. If the NITI Aayog was set up to provide a holistic structure to the dozens of programmes that the government wants to implement to achieve certain lofty goals, it has made a good beginning.

10 And if that is the case, the three year agenda is providing a clear view of the broad contours of the seven year strategy and the 15 year vision of the government.. Joe. C. Matthew, Business Today, 21 May 2017. Economists have endorsed the three-year growth outlook of federal policy think-tank NITI Aayog banking on the reforms currently underway such as the introduction of goods and services tax (GST), the resolution of stressed assets in the banking sector and a planned turnaround in the power sector . Livemint, 10 May 2017. NITI Aayog 's recommendations must be implemented honestly, and without fear or favour, to generate leadership in science , - Gautam Desiraju, Swarajya, 30 April 2017. The suggestion to unify customs duties at 7% is worth following since, apart from removing the issue of inverted duties, it will send out a powerful message on India lowering import duties.