Excelsior Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Nov 11: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh has said that India is confident of achieving the 5 trillion USD economy target with the optimistic environment that has been created under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Addressing the inaugural session of the two-day India-ASEAN Business Summit here today, Dr Jitendra Singh said , the collaboration with ASEAN countries will play an important role in meeting the target of 5 trillion economy for India and the contribution of the North Eastern States of India will be major in achieving this objective.
Dr Jitendra Singh said that for ease of doing business, there are three essentials, which are: i). Connectivity, ii). Communication and iii). Ease of regulations. Giving the example of North East, the Minister said that connectivity in North East has been the main focus of the current Government, with Sikkim getting its first airport last year. He said that that Itanagar will also soon get an airport. He also mentioned about train connectivity in Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya. He further said that we are in the process of flagging off first train to Bangladesh from Agartala.
The DoNER Minister also mentioned the Inland waterways developed by the Modi Government, along the Brahamputra river, which is one of the largest rivers of the world. While quoting the importance of waterways in the economy, the Minister said that the cost of cargo transportation by waterways is one fourth of the cost by train.
Dr Jitendra Singh said that some of the breakthroughs made under Prime Minister Narendra Modi were never expected earlier. He added that the Prime Minister has been reiterating the emphasis on closer and progressive collaboration with ASEAN countries and also focus on development of North Eastern region of India. This is important for business and trade development, the Minister added.
Speaking about the tourism potential of North East, Dr Jitendra Singh said that tourism has grown manifold in the recent years, specially with Home stay tourism in the region. The Government will set up a Films and Training Institute of India (FTII) in Arunachal Pradesh, he added. He said, many initiatives have been taken to promote start-ups in North east, such as tax holiday, provision of exit period and ‘Venture fund’ which is being offered by the DoNER Ministry. These initiatives have helped in curbing the youth exodus from the region, he said.
Ambassador, Royal Thai Embassy and Chair of ASEAN region, Chutintorn Gongsakdi also spoke in the inaugural session. More than 60 delegates from 10 ASEAN countries and more than 200 delegates from India are participating in the summit.
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