North Eastern Region Vision 2020 document outlines strategies for peace

New Delhi, Feb 26 (ANI): Panchayati Raj Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar today said that the North Eastern Region (NER) Vision 2020 document outlines the goals, identifies the challenges and suggests implementation strategies for various sectors for peace and prosperity of the NER.

In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Aiyar said, "The Vision document suggests regional and sectoral implementation strategies for promoting the socio-economic prosperity of the region, with a view to growth rates in the NER catching up with the overall national growth rates."

The document suggests a six-fold strategy for the comprehensive developments of the region. They are (i) Empowering people by maximising self-governance and participatory development through grass-roots planning to promote inclusive development. (ii) Creation of 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. (iii) To develop sectors in the region which have a comparative advantage such as agro processing, hydel power generation. (iv) Enhancing the skills and competencies of the people and building the capacities for institutions within the Government and outside. (v) Creating a hospitable investment climate to encourage investment by private sector particularly for infrastructure. (vi) Harnessing the resources of the Government and the private sector to realise the objectives of the Vision.

The Minister said that the Vision Document stresses the development of agriculture and allied sectors, strengthening of physical infrastructure, participatory development and inclusive governance.

"It has been estimated in the Vision document that additional investment to the extent of Rs. 13,29,891 crore from the XI Plan to the first three years of XIII Plan would be required," he added.

"As per projections made in the NER Vision document, per capita income of India by 2020 is expected to be about Rs 87459 at the 2006-07 prices by 2020. To reach this level of income between 2006-07 and 2019-2020, the Vision document estimates that Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) in the North-Eastern Region will have to grow at 12.95% per year on an average," he said.

As per extant policy, 51 non-exempted Ministries and Departments of the Union Government have to annually spend at least 10 per cent of their Gross Budgetary Support (GBS) in the NER failing which the amount accrues to the Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resource (NLCPR).

The accruals under NLCPR are then spent on projects recommended by the State Governments under the extant guidelines.

The implementation of various measures for the socio-economic development of the NER through the Ministries/Departments and agencies of the Union Government under their flagship national programmes, special schemes and projects for the NER and investments through sources other than GBS is a continuous process. (ANI)