Lot needs to be done on roads in northeast: Minister

Admitting that India is much behind China in building roads along the border areas in the northeast, DoNER Minister Gen V.K. Singh (retd) Monday said the central government needs to give road construction a new direction.

The minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) said the situation would be better in a couple of years.

"A lot needs to be done on roads in the northeast... We (the central government) need to give it a new direction," he said at a press conference here.

The minister said China had better roads because their side of the Himalayas was a plateau and building roads was convenient.

"The progress of roads on the Chinese side will always be better than us because the mountains on our side are not so solid. On the other hand, they have the Tibetan plateau on their side and building roads is easier."

"However, that does not mean we must not try. The progress is good and the situation will be much better in a couple of years," he said.

The former army chief said his focus was to complete the trans-Arunachal highway. "The trans-Arunachal highway will be completed as soon as possible," he said.

Besides, he said the central government was working on linking parts of the northeast region through Bangladesh.

Singh said India was to build a bridge on the Feni river in southern Tripura to get access to the Chittagong port in Bangladesh for carrying goods and heavy machinery for the land-locked northeast region.

"There is greater cooperation with Bangladesh now. The understanding is if we improve the roads up to Chittagong we can use the port," said the minister.

Calling infrastructure and connectivity a priority, the minister said a working group is being formed to look into it.

"We are forming a working group which will look at entire transport sector. We have written to various ministries, to designate a joint secretary for it," Singh said.

The group would be given a timeframe of one and a half months or so to come up with a report, he added.

He said a lot of emphasis was also being put on enhancing the rail network in the region, as well as better air connectivity.

"The government is discussing with the railway ministry the possibility of expediting ongoing rail projects on rail corridor in northeast region."

He added that a holistic approach is needed in the region and pricing of flights will have to be formulated so that it is affordable and also saves time.

The minister also emphasised on skill development in the region and said the central government wanted to make it a hub of organic farming.

A series of cold chains and supply mechanism through private retailers is also being looked into.

Besides, Singh listed good educational and health institutions in the northeast as a priority for his government.

On safety of people from northeast in Delhi, he said the central government was sensitising people towards it.