Bhubaneswar: The chairman of the 16th Finance Commission, Aravind Panagariya has revealed that multiple states are seeking a significant increase in their share of the central divisible pool, from the current 41% to 50%.
This demand was made during the commission’s consultations with various states, with only one or two states requesting a 45% rise instead.
Panagariya, who met with Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, noted that the Odisha government supports the idea of including cess and surcharges collected by the Union Government in the divisible pool. This would allow states to receive a share of these funds, rather than having them go directly to the central government’s budget.
The commission chairman also addressed Odisha’s demand for Special Category status, stating that this issue falls outside the Finance Commission’s purview. Previously, the Planning Commission handled such requests, but since its replacement by NITI Aayog, no state has received this designation.
Additionally, the Odisha government has requested a revision of the weightage assigned to different criteria for distributing divisible pool funds among states. The 16th Finance Commission is currently on a four-day visit to Odisha, where they will continue to discuss these issues with state officials.
