Kohima: The members of the 16th Finance Commission arrived in Nagaland on Monday on a three-day visit to assess the state’s fiscal needs and development requirements.
The Finance Commission team comprising chairman Arvind Panagriya and members Ajay Narayan Jha, Annie George Mathew and Manoj Panda was received at Dimapur Airport by Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton and Chief Secretary J Alam.
During the three-day stay, the Finance Commission team will hold a closed-door meeting with Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, ministers and senior officers in Kohima.
Apart from the financial allocations received through Centrally Sponsored Schemes, the state government is expected to submit a proposal to the Commission, seeking grants-in-aid amounting to approximately Rs 1 trillion for various sectors over the next five-year period, an official said.
The sectors include revenue deficit grants, funds for local governments to empower the rural and urban local bodies, sector-specific grants to supplement expenditures in sectors such as education and health and also state-specific grants given to the specific states for specific projects, the official said.
The demands would be made through a power-point presentation by Additional Chief Secretary and Finance Commissioner Nagaland at the meeting, sources said.
The delegation plans to undertake a tour of historically significant sites in the vicinity of Kohima, with the objective of acquiring firsthand knowledge of the state’s cultural heritage and development challenges.
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The recommendations of the Finance Commission will be pivotal for Nagaland, a northeastern state that is significantly dependent on central assistance for its developmental needs.
