Planning Board Did Not Sit In Last 9 Years

Bhubaneswar: The state planning board did not meet even once in last nine years, informed planning and convergence department minister Usha Devi to the Odisha Assembly on Wednesday.

In a written reply to a question of BJP MLA Dilip Ray, she informed that the planning body met on May 9 and on August 8 in 2003. The last meeting was held on October 15, 2007.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is the chairman of the board.

According to officials, the primary function of the board is to provide short-term and long-term policy guidelines for the formulation of the five-year plan and annual plans at the state and the district levels with a view to achieving economic growth and development in the state.

The board is headed by the Chief Minister and has a vice-chairperson, equal to the rank of a cabinet minister. It also has experts from different fields and eminent social workers. The ex-officio members of the board include planning and coordination minister, chief secretary, finance secretary and development commissioner.

The board did not meet even once during the third term (2009-14) of the BJD government. According to sources, RN Das has been appointed as the board advisor. However, the proposal for reconstitution of the board is still under the government’s consideration.