NORTH-EAST : Ashtalakshmi to Act-East

Anugula Rakesh Reddy

Since the elections of Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya, North East region is the flavour of the season. The region has suffered from severe underdevelopment due to decades of isolation and neglect by Governments in the past. Lack of political will from Delhi not only resulted in unacceptable level of underdevelopment but also created a feeling of isolation among the masses of this region. But, thanks to the Act East Policy of Modi Government. Of late, the region is receiving a lot of attention both politically and otherwise.

Lack of connectivity isolated the region not only from the rest of the country and the world, but also within itself. The infrastructure deficit impeded the economic growth of the region. The previous governments paid minimal attention to the situation. Although the PV Narsimha Rao Government came up with the “Look East” policy in 1992, its focused implementation began only after 2008 with the intervention of the then Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee. Initiatives which included earmarking of at least 10 per cent of Plan Budget of Non-Exempted Central Ministries for expenditure in North East Region had been started by the past governments but the progress of North East Region(NER) remained tardy due to delayed and non-completion of projects.

The present NDA regime has paced up the development work in the region. Under the Proactive Act East Policy, the Government not only aims to reduce the isolation of the region but also plans to make it India’s gateway to the South East Asian Countries. This was asserted by its mention in the President’s address in February last year where the idea of development of North East as the “Ashta-lakshmi” was envisaged.

The issue of Connectivity is being unraveled by the major infrastructural push given by the Central Government. In the last three years, the Centre has sanctioned 3800 km of national highways with an investment of over Rs 32,000 crore, of which more than 1200 km have already been laid. The Prime Minister who is spearheading the development in the NER, also promised that the Union Government would invest another Rs 60,000 crore under the SARD (Special Accelerated Road Development) Programme and additional Rs 30,000 crore under the Bharatmala project in the next few years to come.

Road connectivity projects are not only generating largescale employment opportunities to the people of the region, but also facilitating the defence capabilities of the country. This region having high strategic importance, is being used to open doors for establishing strong relations with Southeast Asian countries. Some projects are also being backed by Japanese funding. Aimed at countering China’s ambitious OBOR Initiative, India hastened the South Asian Sub-Regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) programme and is also working on a multitude of road and bridge projects to improve connectivity with Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar and Thailand. Even though the road connectivity projects are running at a much faster pace than they did during the UPA regime, they are still running behind deadlines in some parts of the region due to various issues, more prominently in the states ruled by the parties that aren’t supporting the NDA.

Rail connectivity for the region is vital considering the regular damage of roads accounting to severe weather conditions. In three years of formation of this government, five of the Northeastern states have been brought under the broad gauge map of the country. Today, no metre gauge line exists in the Northeastern states, thanks to conversion of over 900 kms of track to broad gauge in the last three years. Tripura also got its Rajdhani Express in last october. All the states of the region are now included in the broad gauge network, except Sikkim which hasn’t seen any rail connectivity even after 70 years of Independence. More than 30 new trains including two freight trains have been added in the past few years alone. Works have also started on connecting the region with Bangladesh and Myanmar via rail in order to facilitate easy access to ports and to cut down the time and distance to kolkata.

Of late, the Union Aviation Ministry has also been busy in the Northeast region. The government plans to add 19 new or underserved airports and 17 new heliports in the region under its aviation network. Plans are being laid out to connect the region not only with the country’s mainland but also with other South East Asian Countries. With bases in Shillong and Imphal, The Ministry of Development of North East Region is also planning to introduce a helicopter-based dispensary and OPD services in the far-flung areas of the region. This depicts the Government’s efforts to use all its means to push for better connectivity of the region.

Lately, the Government of India seems to renew its focus on developing the cost effective and environmental friendly inland navigation systems. Whereas only five waterways have been recognised as national waterways prior to 2016, the new national waterways Act of 2016 recognised 106 new waterways as National Waterways (NWs). Of these, prime attention is being given to the NW-2 which is 891 kms of Brahmaputra covering the entire length of Assam and NW-16, which is 121 kms of Barak river. The terms of the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol for Inland Water Transit and Trade (PIWTT) have also been modified enough to ease the connection of these waterways with Kolkata through Bangladesh. This includes the allowance of River Sea Vessels to carry huge amounts of cargo through the waters of Bangladesh. The Central Government is aptly following the principle of “Think Globally, Act Locally” by promoting the use of waterways.

Another sector which bolstered Government’s North East plan is the power sector. The region, with its huge hydro power potential of more than 58,000 MW could soon be the “Power House” to India. Sadly, only less than 2 per cent of it has been exploited until 2016. The situation is currently improving as the region has started feeding the rest of the country with 100s of MWs in 2017. The power potential of the region is so huge that it can not only supply power to the rest of the country but also satisfy the power needs of neighbouring countries—Bangladesh and Myanmar, in turn leading to good relations with them.

The Tourism Sector which is a major revenue source for NE region is the biggest gainer considering

the infrastructural push by the Government. Enhanced air connectivity will attract not only Indian tourists but also people from all over the world to explore the beauty of the region.

Apart from all this, the Government’s support to the ventures by the locals through the North East Venture Fund is receiving a huge praise from the local youth. This fund stands as a great support to local entrepreneurs working on areas such as horticulture, food processing, handicrafts and ITES. Intiatives such as these demonstrate the Central Government’s focus on development of the region.

Politically, the region has been for long considered as a bastion of Congress. But with the special focus on creation of “Ashtalakshmi” under the Act-East Policy, BJP suddenly turned appealing to people of North East with its development agenda. The same was reflected in the Assembly polls of Assam, Arunachal and Manipur that were held post the formation of the government at the centre in 2014. If development remains the central poll agenda till the end of campaign, one should not be surprised to see similar phenomenon in the upcoming polls in Tripura, Nagaland and Mizoram.

Apart from developmental aspects, acts such as the proactive intervention in Doklam and hosting all ASEAN leaders at Republic Day Celebrations have created a sense of pride and instilled faith among the masses of this region in PM Modi’s vision of Act East Policy. The Act and not just the look of the present regime towards East India has huge potential to make the long neglected North East Region gain back the glory of its old days.

(The Author is an Economist and Director, Center for Leadership and Governance)