MUMBAI: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has suggested to the Centre that a high-level committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi be set up for the development of the city.

“Mumbai is the commercial capital of India; unless Mumbai is developed, there is no scope for the development of the country,” Fanavis said. “For the development of Mumbai, there is an urgent need for effective coordination between state and central agencies. Under such circumstances, it will be appropriate to set up a Mumbai development committee headed by the PM.”

Fadnavis was addressing a high-level meeting of chief ministers convened by Modi to provide a substitute for the planning commission.

He said the planning commission should be replaced by an economic development and reforms board. Fadnavis said for balanced and overall development, it was necessary that the Centre involve the state government in the planning and development process.

He said that the board should take up quarterly reviews of developmental programmes and at the same time regional boards comprising CMs should be set up. “Regional boards should be empowered to draft proposals on employment generation and industrial development,” he said.

In his speech, Fadnavis said central legislations were the main hurdles in the development of a state.

“I found that the coastal regulation zone rules, the new Land Acquisition Act and rules pertaining to eco-sensitive zones have adversely affected development of the state,” he said. “The proposed regional boards should have powers to take decisions on disputes arising from these legislations.”

Fadnavis said it was high time that the Centre wound up the centrally sponsored schemes. “In the larger interests of the state, such schemes should be abolished; instead, the funds meant for the schemes should be directly given to the state government so that it can draft new schemes depending on the requirements of the state,” he said.

NCP spokesman Nawab Malik expressed objections to Fadnavis’s proposal, saying it was an attempt to introduce central rule in the city.

