The National Development Council (NDC) or Rashtriya Vikas Parishad is the apex body for decision creating and deliberations on development matters in India, presided over by the Prime Minister. It was set up on 6 August 1952 to strengthen and mobilize the effort and resources of the nation in support of the Five Year Plans made by Planning Commission, to promote common economic policies in all vital spheres, and to ensure the balanced and rapid development of all parts of the country. The Council comprises the Prime Minister, the Union Cabinet Ministers, Chief Ministers of all States or their substitutes, representatives of the Union Territories and the members of the NITI Aayog (erstwhile Planning Commission).
NDC (National Development Council) has been proposed to be abolished. But till date no resolution has been passed to abolish it. Since the inception of NITI Aayog's Governing Council (which has almost the same composition and roles as NDC), the NDC has had no work assigned to it nor did it have any meetings. During the tenure of former Prime Ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh it was felt that Planning Commission has outlived its life and needs some reform. In 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Planning Commission's abolition and created NITI Aayog through an executive resolution.↵It is neither a constitutional body nor a statutory body.
History
The first meeting was chaired by Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru on 8–9 November 1952. So far 57 meetings had been held. The 57th Meeting of National Development Council was held on 27 December 2012 at Vidhan Bhavan, Mumbai.
Objectives
It has been set up with the following objectives
to strengthen and mobilise the effort and resources of the nation in support of the Plan to promote common economic policies in all vital spheres and to ensure the balanced and rapid development of all parts of the country to provide social amenities like education, medical care, social services, etc. to the citizens of the country to improve in living standard of the people to increase in per capita income
Functions
The functions of the Council are
to prescribe guidelines for the formulation of the National Plan, including the assessment of resources for the Plan; to consider the National Plan as formulated by the NITI Aayog; to make an assessment of the resources that are required for implementing the Plan and to suggest measures for augmenting them. To consider important questions of social and economic policy affecting national development; and to review the working of the Plan from time to time and to recommend such measures as are necessary for achieving the aims and targets set out in the National Plan. To recommend measures for achievement of the aims and targets set out in the national Plan.
Composition
The National Development Council is presided over by the Prime Minister of India and includes all Union Ministers, Chief Ministers of all the States and Administrators of Union Territories and Members of the NITI Aayog. Ministers of State with independent charge are also invited to the deliberations of the Council.
The 58th meeting of NDC
Not yet held
The 57th meeting of NDC
Held on 27 December 2012 to discuss plan of(2012-2017)
The 56th meeting of NDC
The 56th meeting of NDC was held on 22 October 2011 to consider the 12th Plan approach paper. The meeting was presided over by Dr Manmohan Singh Prime Minister of India. Dr Montek Singh Ahluwalia, the Dy Chairman of Planning Commission, raised six major issues for consideration at the NDC:
1. Determining the state level five year plans for the Twelfth Plan period early and set targets for growth and other social indicators. They need to be built into consistent national targets for the Twelfth Plan. Create an economic environment that would support the efforts of farmers and entrepreneurs. It will determine much of the outcome in terms of the flow of investment to the State, and the growth of both output and employment.