‘PM working to make Arunachal a major gateway to East Asia’
ITANAGAR, Aug 18: Asserting that the Centre was committed to bringing about development in the northeast, Union minister Dr Jitendra Singh on Thursday said that the region, which was earlier in the news only for violence and insurgency, witnessed a “massive transformation” after the BJP-led NDA government came to power in 2014.
The Union minister of state (Independent charge) for earth sciences, who was here to attend a conference of administrative officials from Bihar, Odisha and northeastern states, also said that good governance was not an option but a “basic right” of all citizens.
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“It was only after 2014, the central government prioritised development of northeast, a region that suffered neglect for decades, and subsequently initiatives were taken up for the growth and progress of the region at par with other states of the country,” he stated.
Noting that Arunachal Pradesh, the peripheral state of northeast, sees the earliest sunrise, Singh said, the place, however, saw the “dawn of development” only after 2014.
“We will have to follow the minimum government and maximum governance formula… Stress should be laid on a citizen-centric approach by involving people in the process to ensure transparency,” the minister said.
The minister advocated for the adoption of a “humane approach” for resolving grievances of people.
“Good governance is not an option but a basic right of all citizens. The government is duty-bound to provide it. The Modi government is committed to providing justice for all. We have already witnessed tremendous growth in connectivity in the northeast. Work to connect all state capitals in the region via rail will soon be completed. Be it for development of new waterways or sea routes, work is underway at a rapid pace,” he maintained
The minister said that the two-day conference – ‘Bringing citizens and government closer through administrative reforms’ – is a step in the direction of reaping the benefits of good governance.
“The administration must reach out to the last man in the queue. People-friendly reforms taken in the last eight years have benefitted the entire country including the people of the northeast states,” he said, complimenting the Arunachal Pradesh government for its “efficient” Covid-19 management.
He added that the two-day meeting, organised by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), in collaboration with Arunachal Pradesh government, will give officials an opportunity to get acquainted with the best governance practices.
A memorandum of understanding was also inked on the occasion among the National Centre for Good Governance, DARPG and the Arunachal Pradesh government for conducting mid-career programs for officers of administrative services over the next five years.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is working to make Arunachal Pradesh a major gateway to East Asia. He said the work culture of Northeast has seen revolutionary transformation in the last eight years.
As a result, the minister said, now the projects in Northeast are getting completed within a fixed timeline and the utilisation of central funds is almost 100 percent.
“Every state is connected to the Union capital by railway and each of the eight states is coming up with its airport whereas Guwahati has turned into an important international airport,” Singh said.
He said the Itanagar conference, being organised by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), comes after the national conference on e-governance held in Meghalaya in August, 2019, when the ‘Shillong Declaration’ on e-governance was adopted to share best practices, latest technology developments and leveraging them for achieving effective governance and public service delivery.
Singh informed that the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances in collaboration with the Government of Arunachal Pradesh and the Centre for Good Governance, Hyderabad has developed a District Good Governance Index, a first for North Eastern states, on the lines of the National Good Governance Index for improving the efficiency of governance across districts, according to a Personnel Ministry statement.
He said DARPG also plans to collaborate with the Government of Arunachal Pradesh to develop a District Good Governance portal for monitoring the rankings of each district of the state on a monthly basis and help in benchmarking performance within the state. (PTI)
