Nagaland: Government Submits Memorandum to Finance Commission

Guwahati: A memorandum submitted by the Nagaland government to the 15th Finance Commission highlighting the impact due to the change of funding in the previous years and a proposal for the next five years – 2020-21 to 2024-25. The memorandum also stated that the development fund received during 56 years i.e. since inception of the state from 1961-62 to 2017-18 is approximately Rs. 26781.39 crore.

The government stating that the stated fund is barely the cost of a major project in some states, also mentioned in its memorandum that “This amount excludes the flagship programs before 2014-15, which were not initially routed through the Consolidated Fund of the State and other direct funding schemes such as National Highways, etc.”

While acknowledging the grants provided by the central government to meet the establishment and administrative cost of the state, it was further stated in the memorandum that due to huge expenditure requirements on account of salaries, wages and pension payments, the fund releases of the Government of India have not been adequate for infrastructure development of the state.

The memorandum also added, “Development has also been hampered due to non-settlement of the prolonged Naga political issue; in which the state had to focus its resources on maintenance of law and order rather than on development activities,”.

“Although Nagaland is the second oldest state in the North East region, we have been left behind in many socio-economic and infrastructure development areas with the other sister states of the region,” it observed.

After initiation of peace talks with the Government of India by the Naga Political Groups, the law and order situation has now improved substantially and now is the right time for the state to focus on socio-economic and infrastructure development, it stated.

The memorandum further viewed one of the main reasons why the state could not develop its socio-economic infrastructure was due to meagre fund released by the Government of India for development works.

It may be mentioned that a team of 12 members led by its chairman Nand Kishore Singh arrived in Kohima on Tuesday afternoon on a three-day official visit to the State.

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