Modi transformed Northeast from terror tag to development model: Dr Jitendra

SHILLONG (MEGHALAYA), February 6 :  Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh today said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had over the last 8 years transformed Northeast from a terror tag to a development model and the State of Meghalaya too has been transformed from a corruption-ridden State to a progressive State.

Speaking at the BJP election rally and later talking to the media here, Dr Jitendra Singh said, though Shillong was the capital of the erstwhile State of Assam, but it was only Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who laid the foundation stone, and inaugurated and dedicated to the nation multiple projects worth over Rs. 2,450 crores in Shillong, Meghalaya in December, 2022, where he attended the meeting of the North Eastern Council at the State Convention Centre in Shillong and participated in its golden jubilee celebrations.

Dr Jitendra Singh said that earlier funds allocated to the Northeast did not reach the bottom level, but after Prime Minister Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister in May, 2014, funds are reaching the real beneficiaries at the villages and being utilized for development. Dr Jitendra Singh said, the Prime Minister has always given priority to the Northeast and he has visited the Northeast more than 50 times in the last 9 years, while the Union Ministers have also visited the Northeast more than 425 times.

Referring to the infrastructural developments in the North East, Dr Jitendra Singh said, the fast-paced work to connect all the capitals of the North East including Shillong with rail service and the increase in number of weekly flights from 900 before 2014 to 1900 happened under the guidance and close watch of Modi.

Under the UDAN scheme, flights are on 16 routes in Meghalaya and the result is cheap airfares for the people of Meghalaya. Similarly, Dr Jitendra Singh said, pro-farmer measures have benefited  the farmers of Meghalaya and North East and said that the fruits and vegetables grown here are easily accessible to the markets of the country and abroad through the Krishi Udaan scheme.

Dr Jitendra Singh recalled the multiple projects include the inauguration of 320 completed and 890 under construction 4G mobile towers, the new campus of IIM Shillong, at Umsawli, the Shillong – Diengpasoh Road which will provide better connectivity to new Shillong satellite township and four other roads projects across the three states viz. Meghalaya, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh.

Quoting Prime Minister, Dr Jitendra Singh remarked that “Meghalaya is a state that is prosperous in nature and culture and this very prosperity is reflected through the warmth and welcoming nature of the people”.

Dr Jitendra Singh said,  5 thousand crore rupees have been spent on the construction of the National Highway in Meghalaya in the last 9 years while the number of rural roads built in the last 9 years under the Pradhan Mantri Sadak Yojana in Meghalaya is seven times more than what was built in the previous 20 years.

He also informed that Northeast is witnessing the construction of more than 150 Eklavya schools out of which 39 are in Meghalaya.

The Shillong airport was developed in the mid 1960s and it came into operations in the mid 1970s. It is operated by the Airports Authority of India as well as the Indian Air force. The new terminal building was built at a cost of Rs 30 Crores and was inaugurated in June 2011. An area of approximately 224.16 Acres was acquired to expand the airport and build the new terminal. The Shillong airport in the state of Meghalaya is located at a distance of 32 kilometers from the main Shillong city. It is situated at an average elevation of 2908 feet above sea level. Domestic flights to and fro from various Indian cities connect them with Shillong. There are flights from Air India and Alliance air that ply between Shillong and different Indian cities.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his last visit to the North-East in December, 2022 landed at the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport (LGBIA) at Borjhar in Guwahati ahead of his scheduled visit to Meghalaya. The Minister was happy to point out that the PM will take a flight directly from the Guwahati airport to the neighbouring state of Meghalaya.