Wayanad ranks first in Niti Aayog programme

Kerala’s Wayanad district has bagged the first spot under the Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP) of the Niti Aayog

Kerala’s Wayanad district has bagged the first spot under the Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP) of the Niti Aayog. The district achieved the feat after its rapid strides in health, nutrition, financial inclusion and skill development sectors, said district collector A Geeta.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who represents the constituency in parliament, took to Twitter to laud the achievement. “Our collective efforts to roll out people-centric initiatives aimed at providing last-mile accessibility has made this achievement possible,” he tweeted. He said he spoke to the district collector in detail about this.

According to Niti Aayog,Wayanad was selected out of 112 districts across the country. The ADP was launched in January 2018 by the Union government with an aim to improve human development index, raise living standards of its citizens and ensure inclusive growth of all.

The Niti Aayog examines different growth parameters every month, monitors the situation and selects the leader. Five core themes are included in selection process — health and nutrition, education, agriculture and water resources, financial inclusion and skill development and basic infrastructure. “Rahul Gandhi takes keen interest in all these sectors and monitors the situation closely. Once the district was notorious for malnutrition but now, we have bridged the gap effectively,” said MP office secretary Augustine Pulpally.