Centre allocates Rs 1,140 crore for NE under BRGF

Aizawl, Feb 26 (UNI) The Centre has allocated Rs 1,140 crore, under the Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF), for the northeast region, official sources said today.

The Centre has also decided to spend an additional Rs 15 crore in each of the districts of the country for infrastructure development.

Sources said that the centre would support 250 districts, including 76 districts of NE region for development, education, healthcare, rural transportation, irrigation, rural electrification and drinking water facilities under BRGF.

According to sources, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has launched BRGF last week to remove the regional imbalance and upgrade the poor infrastructure of the neglected regions.

''BRGF aims to fulfill the prime responsibility of local development of all backward parts of the country, including the northeast, because its an initiative to bridge the regional disparities,'' sources said.

BRGF will be implemented totally through Panchayati Raj institutions following district plans prepared at grass-root level to restore the Panchayati Raj system to the centre of planning process.

UNI