The Northeast states of India have experienced a noticeable development being done after Mr. Narendra Modi sworn in as The Prime Minister of India in 2014. Union Minister Jitendra Singh said that Two projects were either sanctioned, or started or completed for the Northeast region of India, every day in the second term of the action plan ‘First 100 days of the Modi government’. The focus of the ‘100 days action plan’ was to sanction/ start/ complete 200 projects worth approximately Rs 3,000 crore. This means two projects for Rs 30 crore per day on an average.
To attain its agenda in the initial 100 days, 49 projects worth Rs 1,232 crore have been implemented by the Union Ministry in the Northeast regions since June 2019. These include approval of eight new projects worth Rs 586.3 crore under North East Road Sector Development Scheme (NERSDS) and North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS).
The latest initiatives taken by the Modi Government concerning the Northeast region are:
- Zoram mega food Park- Mizoram
- Northeast water management authority to control Assam floods
- Manipur water supply project
The zoram mega food park
Union Minister for the Development of Northeast Region (DoNER) Mr. Jitendra Singh, through video conference, inaugurated the zoram mega food park near National Highway 54 in Mizoram. He said that said that the Modi government is reaching out to the remotest areas of the Northeast region of India and doing its best to meet the needs of the region.
Singh said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accorded highest priority to the North-eastern region in the last six years. Soon after the Modi government took over in 2014, PM Modi had mentioned that they would make vast efforts to bring the North-eastern regions into the developed regions of the country.
Singh recalled that the prime minister visited Aizawl, a city in Mizoram which is one of the smallest states of India, to start a 60-Megawatt Tuirial hydropower project in December 2017. Mizoram is now the third power-surplus state among the Northeast states after Tripura and Sikkim. He expressed the hope that the Northeast regions will take a lead for India to grow as an economic power with its huge natural resources and skilled human power in the post-COVID era.
The zoram mega food park, Singh said it will help in doubling the income of farmers in the area by doing away with the middlemen. He said that there is a need to bring the rest of the nation closer to the Northeast states as “the tiny states offer so much to learn” from their rich and diverse cultures. It will help to get over the limitations of transportation. It will soon become a huge milestone for the storage and processing of a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, spices and food farmed in that region.
He said that there is approximately 40 percent wastage of fruits because of the unavailability of processing facilities. The rich and wide variety of fruits could be made available as pure packaged juice in the Metropolitan cities. He said the “Commitment, intent and sincerity of the Modi government for the comprehensive development of the Northeast states is obvious and the DoNER Ministry is abiding to this mandate and the agenda”. Check the status of Zoram mega food park here.
Assam Floods: Northeast Water Management Authority
Assam has been battling with floods every year since decades, but the government has taken no smart initiative to uproot this problem, until now. The Chief Minister of Assam, Mr. Sarbananda Sonowal, said that the Central Government will now take a step to solve this long due problem and pass an ordinance to set up North East Water Management Authority in the forthcoming session of the parliament. Such an initiative will lead to the provision of a permanent solution of the flood and erosion problem of the state. He thanked PM Modi for his support.
He said that, Assam floods seriously devastate the biodiversity and infrastructures of the state, the government is ensuring to help in the reconstruction of houses once flood water recedes. The state government took a serious note of the damages caused by the flood. The water resources department is directed to take immediate measures to repair the damages caused by Puthimari river at Bogoribari village. He added that funds for the same have been released and the district administration is asked to extend all the help and support to the people affected by the floods.
The floods have severely affected 27 districts of Assam, claiming lives of many people in the state. CM Sonowal visited Solmari Village in Rangia town, which falls under Kamrup district. The village is highly affected by flood waters of Puthimari river. The Governor of Assam, Mr. Jagdish Mukhi, conducted an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas of the state and said that he will recommend to the Centre to provide a permanent solution to the Assam floods and erosion problem with priority.
Mr. Mukhi said that, since Assam flood and erosion are wreaking havoc in Assam for years, there is an urgent need of permanent and scientific solutions to save the people, Animals, landmass and infrastructure from the perennial degradation of Assam floods. He stated that, though the rivers like the Dhnasiri, Brahmaputra, Kopili, Jia Bharali, Beki, Kushiyara, Gaurang, and others are the lifelines of the people of Assam, they need to be controlled during the monsoon season. Extensive research and study are needed for this purpose.
Manipur water supply project
Prime Minister Modi laid the foundation stone of the ‘Manipur Water Supply Project’ on June 23, 2020, via video conferencing. He said that the project will give clean drinking water to Greater Imphal and 1,700 villages in Manipur. It will help the women of almost one lakh families living in Manipur since the women of the region currently walk long distances to fetch fresh drinking water for their families.
He further added that the project is an impressive example of decentralization of power as they have designed it with the help of local panchayats and the people of the region. The project will create job opportunities for thousands of people. The COVID-19 pandemic didn’t stop the work and pipelines were laid amidst the pandemic.
The ‘Manipur Water Supply Project’ is an externally funded project which aims to provide ‘Functional Household Tap Connection’ to 2,80,756 households in 16 districts of Manipur. These include Greater Imphal Planning area, 25 towns, and 1,731 villages. This project will help the Government of India to achieve its ‘Har Ghar Jal’ mission by the year 2024. The project is funded by the Central Government under its ‘Jal Jeevan Mission’. New Development Bank has provided a loan for the project.
Look at the achievements of DoNer ‘100 days action plan’.