| Summary/Abstract |
On 1 January 2015, India's 64-year-old apex policy-making body, the Planning Commission, was replaced by a new institution, the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog. While it is still too early to assess the NITI Aayog's impact on India's complex policy landscape, or the full extent of its social and political implications, the emerging architecture of the new institution provides valuable insights into the Modi government's economic policy priorities and preferred style of governance. My paper argues that, contrary to the government's claims that the NITI Aayog will spur innovative thinking by objective ‘experts’ and promote ‘co-operative federalism’ by enhancing the voice and influence of the states, the new institution is being crafted to enlarge the power of the executive government and the prime minister. The elimination of the Planning Commission, a once-powerful advocate of public investment-led development, and of the National Development Council, an important platform for states to work together towards common goals, has set the stage for what the NITI Aayog will turn out to be. Developments to watch for include the NITI Aayog's role in diminishing horizontal institutional accountability; in reducing the ability of state governments to negotiate with the central government; and in narrowing intellectual diversity within elite policy circles.
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