PM Modi urged Chief Ministers at the NITI Aayog meeting to work as “Team India” to push national growth.
While the sentiment is positive, the reality is that the Centre dominates, and States have limited say.
Federal forums like the NITI Aayog Governing Council and GST Council meet too rarely, limiting States’ ability to raise concerns.
The NITI Aayog Governing Council met after a long gap, and the GST Council hasn’t met in over five months, though it's supposed to meet quarterly.
As a result, States mostly speak about their own local issues, not national cooperation.
Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu proposed forming three sub-groups of States to focus on GDP growth, demographic potential, and technology-driven governance.
Tamil Nadu CM M.K. Stalin suggested the Centre should increase States’ share of tax revenue from 41% to 50%.
This demand is tied to the GST system, which replaced many State-level taxes.
States were promised GST compensation for 5 years, during which they were expected to improve their own tax collections.
States have made some progress — their own tax revenue as % of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) rose from 6.6% (2017-18) to 7.2% (2024-25).
However, GST revenues have underperformed, making a stronger case for States to get a bigger share of central taxes.
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