Prime Minister promises help with Assam`s infrastructure

Business Standard
Press Trust Of India / Guwahati/ Margherita (Assam) January 19, 2014
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said improvement of transport infrastructure in Assam would act as “a bridge” for import and export activities with neighbouring south asian countries of Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
 
Speaking at a programme on augmentation and expansion of production capacity at the North Eastern Coalfields of Coal India Ltd here, he said air connectivity, road and rail facilities needed to be improved.
 
Improvement in infrastructure would work as a bridge for the import and export to and from the state to the south Asian countries, he said.
 
Though Assam was endowed with rivers, he said they created havoc each year posing a major problem in the development of the state.
 
A North East Water Research Authority would be set up in the state soon to solve the recurring flood menace and also to help in generation of hydel power, Singh said.
 
Assuring that the centre would help the state in all possible ways for development of Assam, he urged the state government to set up IT parks.
 
Acknowledging that the tea industry in the state was facing a lot of problems in the last four/five years, he said that his government was taking initiatives to remove all the difficulties of the industry.
 
Stating that the Rs 6,000 crore central assistance package announced yesterday, was the largest ever for the state, he said the Rs 3,000 crore invested in the coal mining project would provide direct employment to 3,000 persons and indirectly to 6,000 others.
 
Another Rs 3,000 crore was being invested by the Centre in the thermal project, the foundation of which he laid at Salakati.
 
The handicraft industry in Assam was yet to be exploited fully and the Centre would provide necessary assistance to generate employment from it, Singh said at another function in the day.
 
Dedicating the Shilpagram marketing centre for handicrafts products at the Srimanto Sankardev Kalakshetra to artisans of the region, he hoped that Assam and the region would be the future handicraft gateway to Asean, China, Bangladesh and east asia.
 
Singh said shilpagram was a blend of imagination and excellence and would attract attention worldwide for its traditional handicraft products.
 
Complimenting the artisans of the north eastern region particularly tribals, Singh said the northeast constituted a vast reservoir of colourful cultural tradition and was a treasure trove of fascinating handicraft reflecting the genius of the people.
 
Earlier, Singh assured the flood and erosion affected victims of all help and rehabilitation from the Centre.
 
He met the flood and erosion affected people at Rohumaria, near here and gave the assurance.
 
The Brahmaputra is threatening to engulf Rohumaria and as a result entire Dibrugarh town and Assam Medical College, the oldest medical college in Asia, is being threatened.
 
Singh inspected the embankment and assured he would “definitely take steps to mitigate the people’s suffering”.