‘Northeast is becoming a key enabler of Viksit Bharat vision’ | India News – Times of India

In the Old Tesen village of Nagaland, unlike any village the evenings are not for relaxing. For the residents, the time is mostly utilised to check their farm produce, restock their inventory and refresh their phones to check for the next online orders for their world-famous Naga King Chillies. A village once disconnected from the outer world and unknown to outstation markets, is now selling their chillies to 250+ international and national buyers digitally.
This tale of transformation is not only restricted to the Old Tesen village but is palpable in every corner of the North-Eastern region of India. For a region which was once languished in obscurity and crippled by the inability of previous regimes is today becoming a key enabler for the new Viksit Bharat vision. At its core is a comprehensive development and social unity approach, headed by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi who has challenged the status quo and taken the uncharted route to make the North-East the ‘Growth Engine of India’.
He addressed the challenges of the region on two crucial fronts – one, maximize investment and implement high-impact capital projects, thus ensuring economic proliferation; second, through building the cultural power of the region. The ‘Look East’ Policy was modified to ‘Act East’ and is now changed to ‘Act East, Act Fast and Act First’. As a matter of fact, in 2014-15, the budgetary allocation by the Centre to the region was Rs 27,359 crore, which has now increased by more than 275% to Rs 1,02,749 crore. Number of airports has nearly doubled in the region from 9 to 17; the region has 16,125 kilometers of National Highways today, 147% more than what it had before 2014. This growth is being supported by digital connectivity – ensuring that 4G connectivity reaches 4,525 villages of NE and about 5,600 villages are being covered under the Digital Bharat Nidhi with a budget of Rs 3,715 crore. This surge in connectivity creates a web on the map of the region, ensuring that the map not only represents cities but also underserved and unserved regions, boost local economies and corroborates North-East as a window to the South East Asian region. Northeast’s unique culture and art is also taking the global stage. Recently, Assamese was recognised as a classical language, Moidams – The Mound-Burial System of Ahom Dynasty got inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List, the 2024 Padma Awards was illuminated with Northeast’s cultural brilliance with a record 11 trailblazers getting awarded.
The Ministry of Development of the North Eastern Region is similarly driven by the idea of “unity in diversity” and through a ‘whole of government’ approach, we have successfully obtained the prestigious Oeko-Tex certification for its Eri Silk, directly from Germany. The platform North East Region Agri Commodity E-Connect (NERACE) which has empowered the residents of the Old Tesen village is now available to every farmer of the region; out of the 3579 sanctioned projects we have completed 2438 – a success rate of more than 68%.
It is with this resolve that we are delighted to host the maiden edition of Ashtalakshmi Mahotsav in Delhi – a celebration of North-east’s vibrant textile sector, tourism opportunities, and traditional craftsmanship. This three-day festival embraces cultural diversity and heritage with 8 State Pavilions, a North East Haat that will house 320 stalls and give a platform to more than 500 artisans to showcase their talent. PM Modi believes that the dawn of development will rise from the East, from Eastern India and this festival aims to power his belief. As we begin the festival in the esteem presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Bharat Mandapam, I urge all of you to come and be part of this celebration. As North East rises to become the biggest reservoirs of India’s growth, let’s traverse it with optimism and determination to build a Viksit Uttar Purv.
To register: https://www.ashtalakshmimahotsav.com/
(The author is Union minister for communications, development of Northeastern region)