Govt asks states to extend Aspirational Districts template in backward blocks

There is no proposal to include more districts under the Aspirational Districts Programme, even as states have been asked to extend the template for accelerating development in backward blocks, Parliament was informed on Wednesday.

In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, minister of state for the ministry of planning Rao Inderjit Singh said under the ongoing Aspirational Districts Programme, 112 districts have been identified all over the country.

He said in the recently held conference of the Chief Secretaries in Dharamshala from June 15 to June 17, 2022, states were requested to extend the template of the Aspirational Districts program for accelerating development in backward blocks.

As the blocks are the administrative units, working directly under the state governments, they are to be identified by the states concerned, the minister added.

In 2018, 112 Aspirational Districts were selected through a transparent process on the basis of published data.

Replying to a separate question, he said the National Multidimensional Poverty Index released by NITI Aayog in November 2021 showed that Bihar has the highest proportion of multidimensionally poor people in any state in India.