3-DAY CONCLAVE ATTRACTS 36 CSR PROJECTS WORTH AROUND RS.38 CR
Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman outlined the need for Nagaland for adequate exposure in order to attract investments so as to reap the benefits of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects.
“Nagaland is still yet to get as much investments as it is capable of absorbing and, as a result, it does also run short of CSR projects,” she said while addressing the media at Police Complex, Chümoukedima.
She acknowledged that chief minister Neiphiu Rio has been taking the initiative to bring in a good number of fund-givers/companies and as a result 36 corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects have been announced for Nagaland worth over Rs. 38 crore, as committed by various companies.
Over and above this, she said some more investors were yet to set foot in Nagaland as they await the complete project proposals even as “they were ready with the money.”
The minister pointed out that Central fund flow to Nagaland had progressively increased since 2014. She said Tax Devolution to the State had jumped from Rs 3,844 crore in 2009-14 to Rs 13,782 crore in 2014-19, a percentage change of over 250% and Rs. 16,188 crore for 2019-23, while grants-in-aid had gone up from Rs 20,812 crore in 2009-14 to Rs 29,483 crore in 2014-2019.
She also disclosed that the total grants-in-aid from the Central government to Nagaland for 2022-2023 would be Rs 4,773 crore.
She also stressed on the need for more bank branches in districts and added that the Finance ministry would like to see enough bank access in all the districts.
She assured that the Centre would make sure that every citizen had banking access, adding that the Union Finance Ministry had done a complete review of districts that were fully covered by banking services and those that were yet to be covered.
She revealed that Dimapur with presence of 94 branches belonging to public sector banks, regional rural banks (RRBs) and semi-private banks had maximum banking coverage in the State, followed by Kohima with 58, while Mokokchung, Wokha and Mon came in third, fourth and fifth respectively.
The minister mentioned that there were altogether 271 bank branches across Nagaland, of which 200 belonged to public sector banks and RRBs.
She said bank accounts were opened for all citizens under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana and that beneficiaries of various Central welfare schemes had received Rs 287 crore through direct benefit transfer (DBT).
She also referred to Prime Minister’s Development Initiative for North East (PM-DevINE) that had been specially designed for the region, stating that Union Finance Ministry had allocated Rs 1,500 crore initially under the scheme, allowing the States to bid for proposals.
She said the State governments could submit capital expenditure project reports in any sector upto Rs 1,600 crore to meet any development or infrastructure required.
Sitharaman further claimed that 17 of the 35 projects under Kohima Smart City project had been completed and that the Central government had released Rs 245 crore for the purpose, out of which Rs 195.99 crore had been utilised as on July 8, 2022.
She said funds were released regularly to PM Kisan scheme beneficiaries in Nagaland, while 2.54 lakhs E-health cards were issued under PM Jan Arogya Yojana, adding that the State had 81 empanelled hospitals.
Asked about poor financial discipline in the State, she pointed out to logistics challenges being faced due to hilly terrain and poor infrastructure, adding that infrastructure projects al-ways took several years across the country. But, she claimed that infrastructure development was now picking up because of the emphasis being given under PM Gati Shakti.
Earlier, she also visited the Heirloom Naga, a weaving centre, at Sovima village and later proceeded to Dimapur District Hospital and inaugurated a Dialysis Centre.
Interaction with business community
Sitharaman also held a closed-door interaction with representatives of the State’s business community and women entrepreneurs during the day.
According to DIPR, during the interaction, she said instructions had been given to the banks to go to each district and continue to converge with existing government schemes, besides making available credit facilities to the trade sector. She also appealed to the community to approach the banks with new business ideas and propositions to strengthen their business.
She noted that the private sector was progressing at a rapid stage and acknowledged Business Association of Nagas (BAN) for its bid to promote every local product and making it viable and accessible outside the local area. She said there was a need to give a push for every district to identify one product that was unique, for which the Centre would provide all necessary assistance and facilities so that this could be segregated, produced and got access to markets.
Sitharaman further appealed to the business community to be specific in its proposal as the policy would not work or come to the ground until and unless it was specific. She assured that the proposals and grievances of each association had been noted and would be looked into.
Earlier, a welcome note was delivered by Industries & Commerce commissioner & secretary Kekhrievor Kevichusa, while presentations were made by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Nagaland Chapter, BAN, Women Entrepreneurs Network Nagaland, UNCTAD-Empretec India Foundation and Confederation of Nagaland Chamber of Commerce and Industry.