On 26th November 2017, the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh chaired the 12th meeting of the Standing Committee of Inter-State Council (ISC), in Delhi.
12th meeting of Standing Committee of Inter-State Council (ISC):
Rajnath Singh said that, Volumes-I & II were discussed during the eleventh meeting of the Standing Committee in April 2017 and Volumes-VI and VII will be discussed during the next meeting of the Standing Committee. He said that the recommendations of the Standing Committee on Punchhi Commissions report will then be placed before the Inter-State Council.
The subjects discussed at the meeting included:
- Matters related to financial transfers from the Centre to the States
- Goods and Services Tax
- Structure and devolution of functions to local bodies
- District Planning
- Special provisions for Fifth and Sixth Scheduled Areas
- Maintenance of communal harmony
- Deployment of Central Forces
- Migration issues
- Police reforms
- Criminal justice system and other internal security issues
The Standing Committee considered 118 recommendations contained in Volumes-III, IV and V and finalised its recommendations.
The members who attended the meeting are:
Union Ministers of:
- Finance and Corporate Affairs – Arun Jaitley
- Social Justice and Empowerment – Thaawar Chand Gehlot
Chief Ministers of:
- Chhattisgarh – Dr Raman Singh
- Odisha – Naveen Patnaik
- Rajasthan – Vasundhara Raje Scindia
- Tripura – Manik Sarkar
Special invitees who attended the meeting are:
- Union Minister for law and Justice – Ravi Shankar Prasad,
- Union Minister of State for Housing and Urban Development – Hardeep S Puri
States of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh were represented by their ministers. Representatives of 30 Union Ministries and 7 State Governments were also present to assist the Committee in its deliberations.
About Inter-State Council (ISC):
- Purpose – discussing or investigating policies, subjects of common interest, and disputes, among states
- Chairman – Prime Minister Narendra Modi