Comment on various development efforts of Government of India in North East.

Model Answer:
The Government of India had set up the Department of Development of North Eastern Region in September, 2001 and upgraded it to a Ministry in May, 2004 underscoring the its complete commitment to ensure development with equity for the NER to unleash the potential of its human and natural resources. Important activities of this ministry include:

• Non Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR)
• North Eastern Council
• Social and Infrastructure Development Fund (SIDF) – Finance Minister’s Package for NER, 2008-09
• North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation Ltd (NERAMAC)
• North Eastern Handicrafts and Handlooms Development Corporation (NEHHDC)
• North East Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (NEDFi)

Recently, Modi Sarkar/GoI made a deal with Bangladesh to develop a road/rail link between Tripura and Chittagong port, thus increasing flow of products between North East India with rest of the country. The path of Chittagong was chosen because it takes large time for other navigable routes. Furthermore, the initiative of Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project to link north- east to rest of India via navigable and land route through Myanmar will provide an alternate access route to the North-Eastern region of India and contribute towards the region’s economic development.