Home Minister Amit Shah said massive development work is going on in Northeast
On a day when the Supreme Court asked the centre to send more paramilitary personnel to Tripura for the civic polls and the Trinamool Congress alleged rigging, Union Home Minister Amit Shah asserted that elections have been held peacefully in the Northeast for the past few years.
"Elections in the Northeast have been conducted in a peaceful manner and for the past five years, all governments in all states in the Northeast region are stably functioning," Union Home Minister Amit Shah said while virtually addressing an event at the Indian Chamber of Commerce.
Mr Shah also asserted that people in the Northeast have accepted Narendra Modi wholeheartedly and due to his efforts, there has been continuous stability in the region. The North-East Democratic Alliance -- a front led by the BJP -- has governments in all states in the region, he said.
"Out of 24 seats in Parliament, NEDA has 19 MPs and out of 498 assembly seats in the entire region, 350 belong to NEDA," he said, adding that the distance between Delhi and the Northeast has also been bridged and that the government has always focused on the region.
The Union Home Minister asked industries to invest in the Northeast and said the central government has created a conducive environment for industrial growth in the region.
He said massive development work is going on in the Northeast, and that infrastructure and road, rail and air connectivity has significantly improved.
"Earlier, there were only two airports (in the region). Now all state capitals are connected by air with the rest of the country," Mr Shah said, adding that the centre wants to move ahead with a 'three E' mantra for the Northeast -- Empathy, Empowerment and Enabler.
"Many reasons have been attributed to why the Northeast was not developed and one of them is that the Left ruled that part of the country for a very long time. But now, the time has come to invest in the Northeast region, give a boost to development there and empower the region," he said.