Bhubaneswar: Chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday left for New Delhi, to attend Niti Aayog’s Governing Council meet at the national capital tomorrow. The meeting will be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Before leaving on a five-day tour, Patnaik said he will raise the issue of Special Status tag for Odisha at the meeting. “I will also demand special packages for Odisha. Besides I will seek appointments with some Central ministers to discuss issues related to Odisha,” he stated.
On the ensuing presidential election and the ‘alliance’ with regional parties as alleged by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Patnaik reiterated, “There is no plan as of now.”
Sources said, the meeting, to be chaired by the PM, is likely to seek the support of chief ministers for various initiatives of the Central government, such as agricultural reforms, doubling farmers’ income, and infrastructure development. Modi will also review the progress in the sectoral policies being evolved by the Niti Aayog and the implementation of recommendations by various task forces.
The Prime Minister is the chairperson of Niti Aayog and all chief ministers are members of the governing council.