CPI asks Centre to restore SCS to NE States
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, July 02 2015 :
National Council of CPI has expressed its deep concern over the recent withdrawal of special category status of North East States without any reason and asked the NDA government to restore it so as to enable these states to overcome the continuing pathetic economy, financial crunch, lack of modern infrastructure and extreme backwardness.
The abandonment policy of Special Category Status pursued by the Modi government is not suggestive measures for maintaining a stable and sustainable fiscal environment and a new form of co-operative federalism and competitive federalism for the economically non-viable states, a release said on Thursday.
It is an obvious attempt to suppress the economically non-viable states.
The SCS status was abolished on the recommendation of the Fourteenth Finance Commission (FFC) which was based on wrong information of development indicators, CPI said.
It added that due to the abandonment policy of the SCS the North-East states will suffer heavily.
It may be recalled that the concept of the special category status was first introduced in 1969, when the Fifth Finance Commission (FFC) sought to provide certain disadvantaged states with preferential treatment in the form of central assistance and tax breaks.
Initially, three states Assam, Nagaland and Jammu & Kashmir were granted special status and thereafter remaining states of all the North-East were included.
The rationale for special status is that these states have inherent resource base and cannot mobilize resources for development.
"The inter-state border disputes appear and reappear frequently with violent activities particularly in Assam, Nagaland and Manipur regions that we have seen during the last few years," the party said.
Trespassing, building of dwelling houses, government offices and construction of roads inside the territories of other states by some inhabitants of one state have caused great tensions leading to firing, killing, arsoning, etc, making claims, counterclaims, road blockades and bandhs in the national highways even at times confrontation of state police forces against each other," it maintained.
Citing examples of the incidents that took place in the last few years in the Assam-Nagaland borders and the recent episode of Nagaland-Manipur border area viz., Dzukou valley dispute have really attracted the attention of the central government, CPI said.
It said unless the inter-state boundaries are protected and preserved strictly under article 263 of the Constitution of India, there might be escalation of more violent activities in these regions, adding thousands of years old history of Assam, Manipur & Tripura should not be ignored.
Therefore, the National Council of Communist Party of India urges upon the government of India to immediately look into the matter and take appropriate action in the interests of the nation, it said.
Secretary of CPI Manipur Council moved the party National Council on the above issues.