IMPHAL, Jun 6: The Modi government has successfully transformed the Northeast and retrieved the region from several decades of continuous neglect, within three years, Union minister Jitendra Singh said today. Addressing a public meeting to highlight the achievements of the three years of the Narendra Modi government here, Singh said the development of the Northeastern region was put on fasttrack so that it could grow at par with the rest of India. Effective and visible steps were taken to bridge the physical and psychological gap between the Northeast and the other parts of the country, he said.
The minister of state for the development of the north eastern region (DoNER) said each of the eight Northeastern states today can rightfully claim to be progressing and growing like any other state. This itself was a huge physical as well as psychological redemption of what was left undone or halfdone in the past, he said. Singh said the extent of priority extended by the NDA government to the Northeast was borne out by the fact that in the last three years, the Prime Minister has made nearly a dozen visits to the region and he chose Guwahati to address a public rally to commemorate the three years of his government on May 26.
Statistically, Singh said, the budget for the Northeast received a hike of over 25 per cent in last three years. Over Rs 40,000 crore has been earmarked for road development. A special road corporation namely the 'Northeast Road Development Scheme' was launched to take care of the neglected roads of the region. The minister also referred to the announcement of launching, the firstofitskind the 'Hill Area Development Programme' for the region yesterday from Imp