Arunachal needs proactive, resource-based strategy: Governor

Itanagar, Feb 20(UNI) Arunachal Pradesh Governor Gen(Retd) J J Singh today stressed the need for a proactive, resource-based and time-bound strategy for development of the state and said the Centre should give foremost priority in this direction.

Addressing the gathering here at I G Park this morning on the occasion of 22nd Statehood Day celebration, the former Army Chief pleaded the Centre not to subject Arunachal to the theoretical 'cost-benefit' analysis and added that money spent in the state was not 'expenditure, but investment'.

''Whatever support we get from the Centre will be used in an innovative and productive manner and we will work hard in improving our administrative mechanism so that better quality of life is made available to the citizens,'' he said.

Referring to the packages announced by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his recent visit to the state, General Singh said the announcement of package was just a beginning and a great amount of will power and hard work would be required to convert this package into reality.

''We will have to undertake a complete government process re-engineering to shift ourself from the programme mode to the project mode,'' he said and added, ''Many reforms need to be undertaken in the administrative, engineering and policy machinery to ensure that the process of development continues at the optimum speed so as to reach to the poorest of the poor of the state,'' he commented.

He said the state need to overcome the petty differences and also the localised development approach, and come up with a common pan-Arunachalee feeling.

''We have to come out of the 'bandh' and 'ultimatum' culture as frequent bandhs and ultimatums are not only detrimental for our growth but they also weaken the very basic fabric of the state,'' he advocated and appealed to the people to become partners in government endeavours to achieve the general target of development.

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