Kolkata, Mar 12 (UNI) Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Saturday stated that a nation grows when its different regions grow. According to the minister, the Eastern States of India have historically been the flagbearers for academia; social and economic transformation. Speaking digitally at the Annual Regional Meeting & Conference on Infrastructure, Investment, Image, Innovation and Inclusiveness of CII Eastern Region, Gadkari said the East has resources for business and industry that can contribute heavily to economic development. Currently eastern region contributes 14.5% to the economy which could be improved with right schemes and policies, he added. The Minister pointed out that his government is giving highest priority to the road development of Eastern and North Eastern region. In his virtual address he stated that around Rs 2 lakh crore would be spent for the development of the region. He emphasized that the government is working towards the development of highways and construction of railway over bridges and under bridges across Bengal. The highway projects will aid in boosting agricultural, industrial and socio-economic growth of the region, he added. Gadkari elaborated on the projects to be taken up in and around Siliguri by his ministry. According to the Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India, the vision of a national highways network of 2 lakh kilometers by 2025 would not only cut down travel time and fuel cost, fast track highways but also help in the economic development of the region. “Our priority is to bring down the cost of logistics to 10 per cent from the current 14-16 per cent”, he added. He also mentioned about the development of 22 greenfield access control expressways which would aid in realizing India’s 5 trillion-dollar economy goal. Highlighting the launch of Indian government’s Gati Shakti-National Masterplan, the Minister indicated that the multi-modal connectivity will help in the development of a holistic and integrated development of infrastructure and will facilitate the last mile connectivity. Speaking about the 29 emergency landing facilities for fighter planes on national highways, the Minister regarded them of strategic importance from a defence perspective. The Union Minister also talked about fuel alternatives like ethanol, liquefied natural gas, green hydrogen which needs to be used the most for saving forex on crude, curbing pollution, and helping domestic industry and sugar growers. He informed that the government is working with Toyota, to launch a Green Hydrogen-based pilot project in India on 16 March. Gadkari also sought the cooperation of all the stakeholders for resolution of problems and completion of projects in a time-bound manner in the Eastern Region. He also requested CII to prepare a vision report on the Eastern Region and submit to enable him engage more in the region. CII Eastern Region organized the Annual Regional Meeting & Conference on “Image, Innovation, Infrastructure, Investment and Inclusiveness with CEOs’ roundtable and fireside chats on Geo-economics and Infrastructure, Investment, Image, Innovation and Inclusiveness.
Comments are closed.