Union Minister reviews urban schemes in Northeast, hails Assam for being best performing state

Union Minister for Power and Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Manohar Lal visited Arunachal Pradesh on July 8 and reviewed ongoing schemes and proposals in the power and urban development sectors for Arunachal Pradesh. On July 9, he continued his review for other North Eastern States.

He congratulated Assam for being the best performing state in the region, under the PMSvanidhi scheme and the first state to adopt the Model Tenancy Act.

During the meeting, the Urban Development Department showcased its achievements and the status of flagship schemes, including the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). The state government requested enhancement of the carpet area for PMAY houses from 30 to 50 square meters and an increase in the Centre's contribution for their construction.

Additionally, the state demanded funding from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) for solid waste management in the Itanagar Municipal Corporation and sought the resumption of lumpsum funding to northeastern states.

The Union minister assured that all matters would be considered sympathetically, taking into account the region's unique climatic conditions and hilly terrain. He appreciated the beauty of Arunachal Pradesh and expressed his desire to visit again.

The meeting was attended by chief minister and deputy chief minister and chief secretary of Arunachal Pradesh, as well as Surendra Bagde, Additional Secretary, MoHUA.

Manohar Lal, on July 9, reviewed the status of implementation of various urban missions in the northeastern states in a meeting held at Guwahati. 

Speaking on the occasion, the minister stressed the utmost priority attached by the government towards growth and development of the entire northeastern region. Furthermore, he drew attention to the urgent need for sustainable habitat development in the region, more so in the context of the India’s resolve to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 and in pursuit of the Prime Minister’s commitment to the vision of ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047.

Ministers and secretaries/commissioners of urban development from Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura presented the key challenges and issues in implementing the central schemes and requested the Centre to consider increased financial support to the north east states, due to the unique geographic and environmental concerns faced by all the states in the region.

The Minister highlighted the geo strategic importance of the northeastern region as well as the potential for tourism. Further, he acknowledged the concerns of increasing demand for supply of adequate land at appropriate locations, housing & basic services and infrastructure facilities due to the increasing urbanisation in the region.  

Speaking about the implementation of the various missions of the ministry in the region, he congratulated Assam for being the best performing state in the region, under the PMSvanidhi scheme and the first state to adopt the Model Tenancy Act, and urged all states to adopt the Act as soon as possible, in the interest of their citizens. The Minister also appreciated the timely completion of projects in the 10 smart cities of the region, under the Smart cities Mission.

The meeting was also attended by Sanjay Kulshrestha, CMD HUDCO and K P Mahadevaswamy, CMD NBCC, who pledged the continued commitment of their companies to support urban and infrastructure development in the region. Manohar Lal expressed optimism about the strategic and comprehensive roadmap for sustainable urban development in the north eastern states.