Assam's Hailakandi top aspirational district: Niti Aayog study

Assam's Hailakandi district has shot up to number one from the 52nd position, among the aspirational districts of the country, a new report released by the Niti Aayog said.

Hailakandi ranked first among the 112 aspirational districts of India on the basis of its performance during November-December 2018 and January 2019, an official release said.

Deputy commissioners of the awarded districts have been invited to New Delhi on March 6 at a conference on Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), where they would receive additional allocation on the basis of the rankings, it said.

"Aspirational district Hailakandi will be given an additional allocation of Rs 10 crore for securing first rank," District Assistant Commissioner Parikshit Phurkan said.

During the June-October 2018 ranking, Hailakandi district was placed at the bottom of the rung of aspirational districts, the release said.

The then Deputy Commissioner Adil Khan had said that proper survey was not possible as most parts of the district were reeling under floods in June.

Khan had subsequently sent a letter to Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant for his intervention to "put things in proper perspective", the release said, adding, Hailakandi was then removed from the 'least improved category' tag.