GUWAHATI, Sept 16 - Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, referring to reports of the World Bank and the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion today, where Assam has been clubbed in the �Jump Start� category, said the new NDA dispensation�s policy is mainly responsible for the lopsided industrial development in the region, stated an official press release here.
Gogoi said the NDA Government at the Centre, immediately after coming to power has put the North East Industrial Investment and Promotion Policy in suspended animation, which has stopped inflow of investments to the State. Moreover, withdrawal of Special Category status and delinking of several welfare schemes from the Central assistance has also put a spanner on the �ease of doing businesses� in the region.
�The abolition of many schemes and pattern of funding by the Centre are responsible for not so impressive growth of the State in the last one year,� he said.
The Ministry of DoNER, which has been set up to expedite the fledging development process in the remote and landlocked North East, has fallen flat as the Centre failed to allocate required funds for the region, Gogoi added.
�The North East is geographically and economically backward and unless the Centre accords special importance, the region will continue to lag behind,� Gogoi said while urging the Centre to formulate policies conducive to large-scale investments and reducing regional disparities. �I have all along been demanding a special status for the North East in NITI-Aayog and other similar fora, but it yielded no result till now,� Gogoi lamented.
The Chief Minister requested the Centre to pay special treatment to the North East by not merely paying lip service but by rendering concrete action to fulfil its promise and help North East catch up with other developed parts of the country.
