Externally aided projects    
DoNER, along with the Department of Economic Affairs, initiated a comprehensive dialogue with the ADB and World Bank.

North East News Agency 

In 2003-04 Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, alongwith the Department of Economic Affairs, initiated a comprehensive dialogue with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and World Bank. The Plan of Action suggested by these Agencies involves identifying and bridging the gaps in Urban Infrastructure, road infrastructure, energy sector, trade infrastructure and water resources. Some of the features are as under:

North Eastern Urban Development Project (Phase-1 and Phase-11) - ADB

It is to create urban infrastructure in nine cities (including eight Capital cities). Each city report will cover:

(i) City economic development strategy.

(ii) Infrastructure investment program.

(iii) Urban Management Improvement Program.

(iv) Urban Poverty Reduction Program.

The feasibility study in each city will include:

Assessment of minimum infrastructure requirement for the project cities.
Review past support to the urban sector.
Base-line survey & identification of indicators for monitoring and evaluation, including assessment of urban poverty.
Prioritization of urban services and infrastructure investments covering water supply, urban roads, transport, sewerage, drainage and solid based management.

Phase l will include five project cities namely, Shillong, Agartala, Gangtok, Aizawl and Kohima. Phase-11 will cover four cities namely, Itanagar, Guwahati, Imphal and Dibrugarh. The Final Report is awaited. The ADB has communicated confirmation of Phase-11 of the project.

North Eastern State Roads Project - ADB

The proposed project will assist the States of the North Eastern Region to develop an integrated road network and enhance reliable road connectivity including institutional support.

The main outputs of the T.A. will comprise:
Prioritization of the Roads, Highways & Bridges to be undertaken.
Institutional strengthening.
About 1200 Kms of road will be identified for investment from ADB. The Final Report is expected in March, 2006.

North Eastern States Trade & Investment Creation Initiative - ADB
It aims at increasing the capacity of the private sector in the North Eastern States in relation to International markets as a part of the South Asia Sub Regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC). The components include:
Identifying policies, legal and institutional constraints to the private sector in North East.
Developing export oriented infrastructure to facilitate industrial growth.

The Study is still continuing.

Natural Resources, Water And Environment Nexus for Development and Growth in North East India - World Bank

The objective of the proposal  is to develop a vision for the development and management of water resources as well as other environmental issues in the North East states for sustainable growth. The specific objectives of the Study are to:

(i) Develop a broad vision for water and natural resources development and management leading to sustainable economic growth;

(ii) Identify critical institutional reforms for management of water and natural resources of the Region;       

(iii)The Ministry of Development of North Eastern Regio alongwith the World Bank have held three Workshops during the year.

One of the major tasks of the Ministry of DoNER is to coordinate with other Central Ministries and Departments for formulating and harmonizing various strategies for development of the North Eastern Region. Currently the flow of resources to the North Eastern States takes place through various Ministries / Organizations, which include Central Schemes, Central Plan Assistance through Planning Commission and project specific resource flow from Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resources and North Eastern Council through DoNER. Besides there are Special Economic Packages announced for these States from time to time. As per the decision of the Central Government, various Central Ministries / Departments, except those which are specifically exempted, are required to earmark 10 percent of their GBS for the development and the savings from this provisioning are transferred to the Non-lapsable Central Pool of Resources meant for infrastructure development in the Region. The Ministry of DoNER, which administers the Pool, closely liaises with all these Ministries for this purpose also. The Ministry also interacts with various stakeholders in the Region, including public representatives and collects feedback from such interaction to translate them into policies and formulate action plans

A large number of students from the North-EAstern region go to the metropoliton and other big cities in pursuit of higher education. Often, they face a difficulty in getting affordable accommodation. The Ministry of DoNER, through the North Eastern Council, and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs are jointly swetting up a hostel at Delhi University for the girl students of the region. The foundation stone for the hostel was laid by Union Minister Arjun Singh.

The Ministry of Human Resource Development has decided to set up an Indian Institute of Management   in the North Eastern Region to cater to the growing need for management studies for the talented youth of the Region. The Ministry of DoNER has also agreed to provide financial support for the setting up of the Institute.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee attached to the Ministry of DoNER visited several projects funded by the Ministry in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya and Nagaland during 1st-7th February 2006. The Committee also held wide ranging consultations with the officials and other stake-holders in the Region on security and development related issues. It expressed satisfaction with most of the measures that the Ministry is taking for development of socio-economic infrastructure in the NE States and gave its observations on several issues including the need to take follow up measures on the projects being implemented under NLCPR and NEC Schemes. Appropriate action in this regard is being taken by the nodal agencies and the Ministry.

During the year three meetings of the Consultative Committee Meeting of Members of Parliament for the M/o DoNER were held on 13-04-05, 18-08-05 and 22-11-05. Some of the important issues pertaining to the development of the Region which were raised and discussed during these meetings inter alia include: Setting up of Central Universities in all the North-Eastern states. Improvement in the connectivity of the region. Improvement of Tele-communication. Setting up more infrastructure projects.

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