Hike 60% CSR expenditure cap, says NITI Aayog

New Delhi: National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog has asked the Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) to hike the expenditure cap by 60 % and redirect more funds for the development of 117 districts from across 28 states, the publication reported.

In Dec, the Department of Public Enterprises has notified rules mandating 60% of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) allocation of CPSEs under health and education to be spent on projects in aspirational districts.

Concerning this, a meeting was held in Jul where NITI Aayog stated that CPSEs should think of removing 60% CSR expenditure cap for the aspirational districts. They should also come up with increased funds. These funds are needed to reform 117 districts identified under the Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP).

Launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Jan 2018, the programme aims to impart all-round development to underdeveloped districts of the country. ADP works on the convergence of central and state schemes, collaboration among citizens and functionaries of Central and state governments and competition among regions.

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Sujata Aggrawal, who is associated with the Aspirational Districts Programme, said, “The ADP initiative is based on a modern way of imparting rapid development in rural and semi-rural districts. Action plans are made in a way that takes the count of human development as its core value system. The ADP focuses on five main themes including health and nutrition, education, agriculture and water resources, financial inclusion and skill development, and basic infrastructure, which have a direct bearing on the quality of life and economic productivity of citizens.”

The Niti Aayog has come up with a new proposal of providing extra funds to the districts, which shows improvement on the parameters decided by the Aayog.