Northeast at heart of govt’s Act East policy, says Modi
GUWAHATI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the Northeast is at the heart of India’s Act East Policy for connecting with Southeast Asia and build trade and people-to-people ties with the Asean bloc.
Addressing the Global Investors Summit in Guwahati, Modi said the tagline of the meet “Advantage Assam: India’s expressway to ASEAN” was very appropriate and was not just a statement but a “comprehensive vision”.
“We created the Act East Policy and the Northeast is at the heart of it. The Act East Policy requires increased people to people contact, trade ties and other relations with countries on India’s east, particularly Asean countries,” Modi said.
“Our vision is development of the eastern part of India, as the country’s fast pace of development will only be effective when the people living in the northeast develop,” he said.
Modi said roads and railways are being constructed at a faster pace in the Northeast and electricity is being generated at a similar pace.
‘UNDERTAKEN BIG REFORMS’
Modi said his government had undertaken many path-breaking economic reforms, making the country the most preferred investment destination with the highest FDI in last fiscal at $60 billion.
He said the NDA government had speeded up the functioning of official machinery and “we want all programmes to be completed before target”.
Those present at the event included Bhutanese PM Tshering Tobgay, several Union ministers, Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, chief minis-
ters of Arunachal Pradesh and Ma nip ur, ambassador sand high commissioners of 16 countries, RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani and Tat a Sons chairman N Chandrasekhar an besides other.
Assam is hosting its first global investors summit to showcase its manufacturing opportunities and geostrategic advantages to foreign and domestic investors.
The summit aims at highlighting Assam’s core competencies in different sectors along with the policy initiatives taken by the state government.