Agartala, June 04: Tripura Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha today placed a series of demands for the state, including operationalisation of direct Agartala–Chittagong flights, early commencement of the Badarpur–Sabroom double-line railway project, and consideration of a 40% rebate in natural gas prices.
He also urged for setting up of an IT Park and provisions under the ‘Pride of Hills’ scheme may be enhanced from Rs. 3,450 crore to at least Rs. 6,000 crore per annum for Tripura State.
Dr. Saha said this while addressing the 73rd Plenary Session of the North Eastern Council held in Shillong in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, DoNER Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, DoNER MoS Sukanta Majumder, Chief Ministers of all North Eastern states, and Governors.
He said that under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and with the support of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Tripura is scaling new heights of socio-economic development.
“We have doubled the Gross State Domestic Product in the last six years, while our per capita income is now at par with the national level. Due to all-round development in various sectors, the Government of Tripura has received more than 350 national and regional awards in the last 8 years,” said Dr. Saha.
He informed that due to investment-friendly policies, Tripura has received investments worth more than Rs. 30,000 crore during the last year, while projects worth more than Rs. 8,000 crore have been grounded. Under the Tripura Startup Policy 2024, more than 200 startups have been recognised.
He said that due to improved health infrastructure in the state, out-of-state patient referrals have been reduced by 80%, while MBBS seats in the state have increased from 225 to 550 and postgraduate seats from 85 to 196 in the last four years.
Dr. Saha also requested in the plenary session that the National Highways Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) ensure quality road construction, as well as take up four-laning of the Churaibari–Mugaikami, Agartala–Udaipur, and Udaipur–Amarpur stretches on priority.
“Operationalisation of direct Agartala–Chittagong flight services and extension of the runway, along with operationalisation of Kailashahar Airport under the UDAN scheme, may kindly be taken up on priority. Early commencement of the Badarpur–Sabroom double-line railway project, operationalisation of electric passenger train services up to Sabroom, and the Vande Bharat Express between Agartala and Guwahati is requested,” he said.
Dr. Saha also requested consideration of a 40% rebate in natural gas prices and the setting up of an AIIMS institute at Agartala.
“I kindly request the Ministry of DoNER to consider sanctioning an Information Technology Park and a World Skill Centre under PM-DevINE. As no Revenue Deficit Grant has been recommended by the Sixteenth Finance Commission, it is requested that provisions under the ‘Pride of Hills’ scheme may be enhanced from Rs. 3,450 crore to at least Rs. 6,000 crore per annum for Tripura State,” said Dr. Saha.
He said that the Ministry of Finance has imposed a ceiling of Rs. 4,146 crore for Tripura to avail funding under Externally Aided Projects. It is requested that the EAP ceiling be enhanced to Rs. 10,000 crore to sanction all projects in the pipeline.
On investment promotion in the North Eastern region, the Chief Minister, being the convener and chairman of the High-Level Task Force, also highlighted the objectives of the task force, thrust sectors in goods and services, challenges, and mitigation measures. He also highlighted snapshots of all the North Eastern states, including Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura.
Later, Dr. Saha also recommended promoting the North Eastern region as India’s Green Industrial Hub, developing an Eastern Startup Corridor, establishing a North East Industrial Free Trade Authority, promoting cross-border cluster diplomacy, establishing a North East Skills University with campuses across all states, tourism development, promoting community-owned tourism, and designing socially embedded investment.
On connectivity, Dr. Saha proposed regional coordinated multi-state planning and selecting high-impact interventions supported by private participation.