RAS question
The Governing Council of NITI Aayog includes:
Correct answer: (A) Chief Ministers of all States and Lt. Governors of UTs.
The Governing Council of NITI Aayog includes the Prime Minister, the Chief Ministers of all States and Union Territories with legislatures, and the Lieutenant Governors of other Union Territories.
Explanation
NITI Aayog's Governing Council is framed as a cooperative-federal platform, not as a body of Governors, MPs, or only Union ministers. The official NITI Aayog page states that it comprises the Prime Minister of India, the Chief Ministers of all States and Union Territories with legislatures, and the Lieutenant Governors of other Union Territories, along with NITI Aayog's ex-officio members, Vice Chairperson, full-time members and special invitees. That matches option A's core idea: States and Union Territories are represented through their elected Chief Ministers where legislatures exist, and through Lieutenant Governors for other Union Territories. This is why the Council is described as NITI Aayog's highest body for inter-state coordination and discussion of federal issues.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) Governors do not represent States in the Governing Council; the composition names Chief Ministers of all States instead.
- (C) Members of Parliament from both Houses are not listed as a category in the Governing Council's composition.
- (D) The Council is not limited to Union Cabinet Ministers, because its composition includes the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers, Lieutenant Governors and NITI Aayog members or invitees.
Concept
This tests the polity theme of cooperative federalism and the institutional design of NITI Aayog. It recurs in RAS because Centre-State coordination bodies are standard governance facts and are often tested through membership-based MCQs.