Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) was implementing Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF) Programme (District component) during the period 2006-07 to 2014-15 which provided financial resources for supplementing and converging existing developmental inflows into identified districts to bridge critical gaps in local infrastructure and other development requirements. BRGF Programme has been delinked from the budgetary support of the Central Government since 2015-16 consequent upon the implementation of the recommendations of the Fourteenth Finance Commission under which the share of States in the net proceeds of the Union taxes was significantly enhanced from 32% to 42% that allowed the States with greater autonomy for financing and designing the developmental schemes, especially for the backward regions. Further, as apprised by NITI Aayog, Aspirational Districts Programme, implemented by NITI Aayog, aims at rapid transformation of 112 Aspirational Districts which shows relatively less progress in key social and economic indicators such as Health and Nutrition, School Education and Basic Infrastructure, Agriculture etc. Performance of these districts is monitored on a monthly basis which is available in the public domain on the Champions of Change Dashboard http://championsofchange.gov.in/site/coc-home/).  The broad strategy of the Aspirational Districts Programme rests on the 3 Cs – Convergence (between Central and State Schemes), Collaboration (between Centre, State, District Administration, Development Partners and Citizens) and Competition (between Districts). Every month, districts are ranked on the basis of progress made on the key performance indicators mentioned above, and this instills them with a sense of competition which results in rapid improvement.

This information was given by Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj Shri Kapil Moreshwar Patil in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.

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