Modi believes that in the spirit of 'cooperative federalism' the venue for such meetings between him and the chief ministers should take place around the proverbial 'round table'.

UP is an important state to roll out the government's agrarian reforms and job growth policies.

A senior finance ministry source said making the use of debit cards and e-wallets compulsory across the board is legally untenable, but banks have been asked to insist their account holders use these instruments

Breaking a long tradition, the PMO has ensured that specific divisions in each ministry are allocated to junior ministers.