Northeast India is now known for development, tourism, organic farming, industry and start-ups: Amit Shah

GUWAHATI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah said Northeast India, which was once in the news due to terrorism, blockade, violence but now it, is known for development, tourism, organic farming, industry and start-ups.
He added that the North East region will emerge as one of the favourite tourism and business destinations of India. Peace in the North East is very important for the economic development, promotion of tourism and employment in the region.

Shah inaugurated the "Destination North East -2020" through video conferencing on Sunday. The Union Home Minister is also the Chairman of the North-East Council. “North East, rich in natural beauty, folk culture and art, is fully capable of becoming a major centre of world tourism”. Shah said that “under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the North East region will emerge as one of the favourite tourism and business destinations of India”.

Shah said that he has seen the tourist places of many states and countries but the beauty of the North East is unparalleled. "Northeast is the jewel of India; without it the Indian culture is incomplete. "While inviting the next ceremony to be held in his constituency Gandhinagar, Shah said that “this will make the people of Northeast familiar with the culture of Gujarat and the people of Gujarat will be introduced to the culture of the North-East”.

The Union Home Minister also said that “a lot of work has been done to establish peace in the Northeast. The Land Border Agreement with Bangladesh, Manipur Blockade, Bodo Agreement and the surrender by 641 cadres of 8 militant groups are among the notable achievements of the Modi government”.

Shah said that “after becoming Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has visited the North East more than 30 times, most by any Prime Minister since Independence. “Development is not possible without proper funds. Earlier, plans were made for the development of North-East but the amount allocated for them was very less. The 14th Finance Commission increased the allocation for the Northeast by 251 per cent to Rs 3, 13,375 crore, whereas the previous government in the 13th Finance Commission had earlier given only Rs 89,168 crore”.

Shah also said that the “ Modi Government has decided to spend 21 percent of the budget of the North-East Council on the backward districts, villages and deprived communities”.

The Union Home Minister said that the Modi government has made a huge effort in the direction of linking the North Eastern states amongst themselves and connecting the region with the rest of India by rail, road & air links. Under this, 6 railway projects worth Rs 15,088 crore have been completed. Also, Rs 553 crore will be spent on the development of airports and about Rs 10,000 crore on 19 road projects of 869 km length”.

Shah said that “during the Corona era, the Modi government has provided all health facilities to the people of North-East, including medicines and treatment through teleconference by AIIMS doctors”.

He called for making the Northeast a tourism and industry hub and an IT and organic farming hub to increase the Northeast's participation in the country's GDP by 2024 and make it an important part of the Government of India's Act East policy.

Destination North East is a calendar event of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region conceptualized with the objective of taking the NorthEast Region to other parts of the country.

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma said due to the Covid-19 pandemic, tourism in the State has been badly hit, however, the Government has prepared a roadmap to revamp the tourism sector in the State. “The Government of Meghalaya is conscious of the impact of Covid-19 on the growing tourism industry in the state and therefore, it is crucial to plan the reopening of tourism in Meghalaya so that it benefits all the tourism stakeholders involved, the residents of the state and the travellers & visitors alike”, he added.

He said, “Amidst the disruption caused by the pandemic, there is also an opportunity for Meghalaya and Northeast. India has almost 26 million outbound tourists. A large section of these will look for exotic destinations within the country. Meghalaya is one such exotic destination that will be ready to welcome a big section of these high-value tourists”.

Sangma informed that direct flights from Delhi to Shillong will start at the end of October 2020, which will further add to the growth of the tourism sector in the State.