The latest initiative is a North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS) entirely funded by the central government for infrastructure projects like water supply, power and connectivity.
North-eastern Development Finance Corporation Opportunity Scheme for Small Enterprise ( NoSSE) is specially formed to help first generation entrepreneurs.
The Act East Policy emphasised the development of the infrastructure of the region by building roads and Highways, expansion of air connectivity, an extension of railway networks, the opening or trade routes, as well as creation of infrastructural conditions for border trade.
Nine cities from across the Northeast region are declared as 'Smart Cities'- Agartala, Guwahati, Imphal, Kohima, Namchi, Gangtok, Pasighat, Itanagar and Aizawl.
Institutions for North-East development:
The Department of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) was established in the year 2001.
It became a full-fledge Ministry of the Government of India in 2004.
The Ministry of DoNER functions as the nodal Department of the Central Government to deal with matters related to the socio economic development of the eight States of Northeast India.
It handled the Non Lapsable Central Pool of Resource.
The North Eastern Council (NEC) is a statutory regional planning body for North East India constituted under the North Eastern Council Act 1971.
All he Governors and the Chief Ministers of the eight State; in the North East are Members of the NEC.
The Union Home Minister is the Chairman, and the DoNER Ministry acts as the Vice Chairman.
Way Forward:
Tourism, specifically eco-tourism and rural tourism, is another sector with massive potential.
Profit can be further maximised by value addition through food processing. In all these, infrastructure such as cold storage, agricultural link roads, and easily accessible markets should be priorities.
Handloom & Handicrafts is another industry with potential in north east, due to the indigenous textiles culture of the State.
The Kaladan multi-Modal Transit Transport Project (KMMTTP) is a massive connectivity project being undertaken by the Government of India to connect Haldia in West Bengal to Sitwe Port in Myanmar, which will then enter India through the southern part of Mizoram.
In the midst of these expectations and optimism, all the stakeholders have to play their part to convert the underlying challenges into future opportunities.
Six fold strategy for North-East Development:
Empowering people by maximizing self-governance and participatory development through grass-root planning to promote inclusive development.
development opportunities for the rural areas through enhancing productivity in agriculture and allied activities such as animal husbandry, horticulture, floriculture, fisheries and generation of livelihood options through rural non-farm employment.
To develop sectors in the region having a comparative advantage such as agro-processing, hydropower generation.
Enhancing the s kills and competencies of the people and building the capacities for institutions within the Government and outside.
Creating a hospitable investment climate to encourage investment by the private sector particularly for infrastructure.
Harnessing the resources of the Government and the private sector to realize the objectives of the Vision.
Conclusion
Development problem has to be seen in the light or Indian culture and her inseparable links with local cultures, indigenous faiths, ethnic diversity, biodiversity and such unique but eco- friendly things of this vast and unique Area.
Cultural and developmental renaissance of the Northeast area will give us an elevation to be once again a dominant soft power in Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia.
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