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New Government may revamp MHA

PMO may have a new department dealing exclusively with Centre-state relations

New Delhi: The BJP-led NDA, that is all set to form the government at the Centre, will focus on improving relations with various states over the next few days, thus triggering speculation that the key division dealing with Centre-state relations in the Union home ministry is headed for a major revamp.

Sources said that the new PMO under Narendra Modi too will have a new department dealing exclusively with Centre-state relations.

Though it is a known fact that Mr Modi has been a strong advocate of stren-gthening the federal structure and giving states m-ore autonomy, the move also has a political aspect to it. Even as the NDA has managed a comfortable majority in the Lok Sabha, it does not have the numbers to push through key legislation in the Rajya Sabha. Thus the BJP would be heavily dependent on regional players for support and is willing to go that extra mile to build bridges with them.

This could mean the states getting a free hand on a host of issues, ranging from law and order to allocation of funds, particularly for police modernisation and security-related expenditure.

“A major advantage of Mr Modi becoming the Prime Minister is that having been the Chief Minister of a state he has experience of working with the Centre. So he knows what kind of problems the state can face and can work towards eliminating them,” a senior government official said.

Another important change in the MHA’s functioning in the days ahead could be the Centre adopting a more proactive approach on the Naxal issue. Sources said that it could be a more result-oriented approach, indicating more armed operations to deal with the Naxal menace. Mr Modi has been critical of the UPA government’s handling of the Naxal issue.

( Source : dc )
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