Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio said the functional autonomy of North Eastern Council (NEC) had been significantly diluted over the years and its role was becoming insignificant.
Addressing the 72nd plenary session of the NEC Governing Council at Agartala on Saturday, Rio emphasised that the NEC, which had been set up with a special purpose due to the special needs of the North Eastern region (NER), deserved more resources at its disposal.
He said during the previous plenaries, he had expressed concern at the diminishing role of the NEC, and stressed enhancing fund allocation for the council.
He requested Union Home Minister and NEC chairman Amit Shah to consider providing more budget allocation and increase delegation of powers to sanction projects so that the regional aspirations of the states were fulfilled by the council.
Noting that the NEC had been functioning as a statutory regional planning body since 1971, he acknowledged the good and the work done by the council for development of the region.
He said though it had been almost 50 years now since the NEC was set up, the NER still had a huge development deficit when compared to the developed states of the country.
The chief minister expressed gratitude to the central government for undertaking development initiatives for the north-eastern states through schemes like the Prime Minister’s Development Initiative for North-East Region (PM-DevINE) and North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS) (Roads).
While appreciating these efforts, he pointed out that the financial outlay for Nagaland under PM-DeVINE from 2022-23 to 2025-26 was only Rs 561 crore, and only Rs 276.69 crore under the NESIDS (Roads) for the same period.
While helpful, he pointed out that these allocations were insufficient for undertaking major infrastructural developmental projects.
He urged Shah to consider enhancing the budgetary allocation for PM DevINE and NESIDS (Roads) to Nagaland, so that the state could undertake impactful projects that truly addressed the people’s aspirations and foster inclusive development.
Highlighting the issue of delays in the approval and clearance of projects by NITI Aayog and ministries, Rio pointed out that these delays impeded timely implementation of schemes and projects, causing frustration among stakeholders and slowing down the progress of developmental initiatives.
He called for considering a time schedule, asking the states for a priority list by December/January and submission of state priority list to Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER)/NEC by April/May so that the approval could be accorded by the ministry in June/July. He said this would enable the implementing departments to initiate the tender process by August/September, and the work order could be issued in October.
The works could be started by November and completed before the onset of monsoon.
He mentioned that the state government was unable to undertake capital and important infrastructure projects due to limited resource base. Hence, he pointed out that the government had submitted important projects such as construction of an airport at Ciethu, Kohima, Foot Hill Road to boost urbanisation and industrialisation in the state, completion of Multi-Disciplinary Sports Complex at Dimapur to promote sports, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) to serve as a prestigious national institute for enhancing youth exchanges and fostering greater integration between Nagaland and the rest of the country.
He appealed the DoNER Ministry/NEC for support, and coordinate with agencies concerned for approval of these projects to help accelerate the pace of economic development and address infrastructure needs.
Thanking the NEC chairman for giving the opportunity to share views on regional development and progress, Rio called for hosting the NEC plenaries to the north-eastern states on a rotational basis.
He maintained that such an approach would enable all states in the region to actively participate and contribute to the planning and decision-making process, fostering a sense of inclusivity and shared responsibility in regional development initiatives.
He also claimed that Nagaland was now peaceful and had successfully hosted the 25th Hornbill Festival recently. This was stated in a DIPR press release.