– 10 State and Union Territory representatives skipped the NITI Aayog meeting chaired by PM Modi, with 7 boycotting it due to concerns about allocations and projects in the Union Budget
– The NITI Aayog, meant to focus on cooperative federalism, has been criticized for being limited to an advisory body without powers of resource distribution
– Opposition-ruled States have complained that the Centre favors BJP-ruled States for investment projects, leading to disenchanted leaders boycotting meetings
– The NITI Aayog needs to be re-envisioned to bring back some of the responsibilities of the Planning Commission for a truer cooperative federalism.