Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the North East states of India are witnessing a dawn of new hopes and opportunities as he inaugurated Donyi Polo Airport in Itanagar, the fourth operational airport in Arunachal Pradesh and the first greenfield airport in the state.
“This is a new era of expections and aspirations and today’s programme is a perfect example of the new approach of India,” Modi said.
“The Donyi Polo Airport is becoming a witness to the history and culture of Arunachal Pradesh,” the PM said while addressing the gathering. He also praised the commitment of the people of Arunachal for the development of their state.
The Prime Minister noted that in the post-independence period, the Northeast region faced indifference and neglect. He said that earlier “remote border villages were treated as the last village” but his government considers the villages in the border areas as the first villages of the country which has resulted in making the “development of the Northeast a priority for the government.”
PM continued, “be it drone technology or Krishi UDAAN, be it airport connectivity or port connectivity, the government has set the priority of development on North East.”
PIB New Delhi
The foundation stone for this airport was laid by the Prime Minister himself in February 2019.
The Prime Minister said that Donyi Polo Airport will be the fourth operational airport for Arunachal Pradesh, taking the total airport count in the North-East region to 16.
From 1947 to 2014, only nine airports were built in the North-East but in a short span of the last eight years, seven airports have been built in the North-East.
Highlighting the infrastructural developments in Arunachal Pradesh, PM gave the example of highway construction in remote and inaccessible areas and further added that the central government is going to spend another 50,000 crore rupees in the near future.
PM informed that huge opportunities will be created in the field of cargo services with the development of the new airport infrastructure and as a result, the farmers of the state can now sell their produce to bigger markets.
He also highlighted the government’s efforts to develop all the border villages under the Vibrant Border Village Programme which will give a boost to tourism and reduce migration in the region.
Arunachal has arrived…
The long-awaited Donyi Polo Airport, Itanagar, has been inaugurated by the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, in the presence of HCM Shri Pema Khandu, HDCM Shri Chowna Mein, Hon’ble L&J Minister Shri Kiren Rijiju, and other delegates. pic.twitter.com/6qZt1x0rxq
— MyGov Arunachal Pradesh (@MyGovArunachal) November 19, 2022
At the programme in Hollongi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also dedicated 600 MW Kameng Hydro Power Station to the nation.
The Rs 8,450 crore Hydro Power Station, located in an area spread over more than 80 kilometres in West Kameng District of Arunachal Pradesh, will make Arunachal Pradesh a power surplus state and also benefit the National Grid in terms of grid stability and integration.
PM Modi also launched a coffee-table book on the central government’s regional connectivity scheme UDAN.
Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, Pema Kandu, Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, B D Mishra, and Union Minister Kiren Rijiju were those present on the occasion among others.
Read more: PM Modi to inaugurate Donyi Polo Airport in Arunachal Pradesh on 19 Nov
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