From Planning Commission to NITI Aayog

The Planning Commission worked for over six decades but drew growing criticism. It was seen as too centralised — deciding plan allocations for states from the top down (a "one-size-fits-all" approach) — and as reducing states to claimants of central funds rather than genuine partners in development. Critics argued the country needed an institution better suited to a large, diverse economy in which states differ enormously in their needs.

On 1 January 2015, the Government of India replaced the Planning Commission with the NITI Aayog — the National Institution for Transforming India. This was a real change of role, not just a change of name. The old body allocated funds and approved state plans; NITI Aayog does not allocate funds. Instead it works as the government's think-tank and policy adviser, and as a platform for cooperative federalism — bringing the Centre and the states together to design and pursue development goals as partners.

The change matters for a state like Manipur. Under the new arrangement, states are meant to have a stronger voice in shaping national priorities, and the Centre's development effort is channelled through targeted programmes (discussed later) rather than a single centrally-fixed plan allocation. Understanding this shift — from the Planning Commission and its Five Year Plans to NITI Aayog — is central to the Manipur economy Five Year Plans NITI Aayog topic in this course.