Union Minister Kirti Vardhan Singh after a programme with BJP officials at State BJP Office, Kohima on February 18. (Morung Photo)
Morung Express news
Kohima | February 18
Minister of State for Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Kirti Vardhan Singh has said that centre has big proposals for improving connectivity in North East in the Budget 2025 on areas including roads, air, railways and digital connectivity to all village panchayat.
He was addressing a press conference at the State BJP Office (Forest Colony) on February 18 and highlighted about the recent Union Budget.
During his maiden visit to the North-eastern Region and Nagaland being the first, he opined that although there are wide scopes of eco-tourism in this part of the country, there was dearth in connectivity and making accessibility was key to improving all spheres of development. He added that North-eastern states play an indispensable role in the country and play an integral part.
The Union Minister expressed that the centre is taking all efforts and exploring avenues for the development of the region.
“Centre wants to bring northeast to the mainstream of development like other parts of the country,” Singh pointed out adding that this states can contribute to what the whole country is witnessing in the sphere of improving GDP, fast growing economy.
He said that the centre has big proposals for improving connectivity in the North-eastern Region while keeping in mind that construction of new airports require land, connectivity to that land and the feasibility for Government to suitably take up the construction.
The minister said Internet/digital connectivity extending to all villages and panchayat and schools has been proposed to explore information technology in health, education among others.
“Present budget presented by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is a landmark budget and reflects the aspiration of the people of the country and vision of our Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a Viksit Bharat and Atma Nirbhar Bharat by 2047,” he underscored.
Singh commented that this budget has special focus on raising farmers income; deals with raising output of middle and small economies, to increase exports, defence production, how to give employment to our people and focuses on reducing poverty to zero level, to provide quality education to the students to all, skilling of our Youth workforce and empowerment of womenfolk and specially tribals.
He further added that significant reforms have been made in the tax sector and efforts have been done to make ease of doing business and industries, providing universal healthcare, improve connectivity in the country- including roads, National highways, rail, air connectivity.
In all of these areas, the Minister said budgets in all these areas have been substantially increased.
Commenting on how the Budget 2025 is a roadmap for development of these regions, he pointed out how North East has been seen as an inaccessible part of the country and there was a significant divide not only in mental outlook but especially pertaining to infrastructure and connectivity with rail, roads, air services.
“In the past years, we have made significant progress as far as UDAN, a Regional connectivity Scheme concerned and many airports have been added,” he added.
This region is connected to the country in every way, many new railway lines and stations have been developed, many airports are planned and roads are build, the Minister said
Commenting on a query on why Railway operations especially those starting from Dimapur were significantly cut down recently, he explained how this has come about due to emergence of many new railway lines even in the NE region and some trains which earlier made stops or began from Dimapur now directly operates from those places or station.
Other reasons were due to opening of many highways and Regional connectivity services made accessible to the people have further resulted in loss of traffic for the Railways.
The Union Minister said he will take the query into consideration and look for railway reforms.
Singh further added that in the current budget, 50 new airports have been planned in the Northeastern areas out of around 120 new destinations to be developed where most of them will be in Northeastern areas.
Singh assured that with the long pending airport at Chiethu, a Greenfield Airport in Kohima remaining incomplete for the past years will be taken up for pursuance.
He further clarified that there is separate funding mechanism called the DoNER for Development of North-Eastern Region and said it has been formed observing that this region through the Central Authority, it is easier to monitor, administer and plan development activities to give special focus for the region and require more development.
He also clarified that Act East policy is a Ministry under the external Affairs which concerns neighbouring countries which does not feature in the Budget but it is for maintenance of good relationship and improving infrastructure with neighbouring countries but is not particularly with North East.
