Patna,(BiharTimes): Jitan Ram Manjhi is among the chief ministers who advised the prime minister Narendra Modi not to restructure or dismantle the Planning Commission in haste. Speaking at the chief ministers’ conference in New Delhi on Sunday the Bihar chief minister said a meeting of the National Development Council should be convened to discuss the matter and the PM should take a holistic view on the issue.

He suggested that the final decision should be taken after considering the observations of all the stakeholders.

Manjhi said the public perception is that the government had decided to bid goodbye to the process of planning. This move would allow market forces and capitalists an opportunity to define growth and development in the country.

According to Manjhi any substantial change in the Plan strategy would create confusion and make developmental projects dysfunctional. Thus planning process cannot be given a goodbye.

The chief minister once again demanded the special status category for Bihar, which would improve its access to external resources; act as a catalyst for private investment based on tax breaks and concessions; and spur employment generation.

He said Bihar was getting poor allocations from the Centre. Manjhi demanded immediate payment of Rs 2,584 crore as pension liabilities paid to the officers and employees in Jharkhand following the carving out of the new state on November 15, 2000. He said the ministry of home affairs had passed an order about the payment to Bihar in September 2012.