ITANAGAR, Sept 28 - Union Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) Dr Jitendra Singh today inaugurated the three-day ATAL (Arunachal Transformational and Aspirational Leadership) Conclave at the Dorjee Khandu State Convention Centre here in the presence of Chief Minister Pema Khandu, Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein and other dignitaries.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Singh congratulated the Khandu Government on conducting the first-of-its-kind conclave targeted people in the age group of 18 to 30 years to engage them proactively in areas of public policy and governance.
The ATAL Conclave will act as a platform to tap the huge untapped potential of the youth in the State. The Union minister said former Prime Minister late Atal Bihari Vajpayee had initiated the work of transforming India, which is being taken up by the present Prime Minister now. He said the wholesome growth of India is not possible if one part of the country lags behind and added that it was under Vajpayee�s leadership that the North East got unprecedented attention from the Centre.
The DoNER Minister appreciated the Chief Minister for taking �decisive� action on selection of land for the proposed greenfield airport at Itanagar. He announced that by December this year, the foundation stone of the airport would be laid.
In his speech, Khandu said the whole idea behind the ATAL Conclave was to ascertain �what our youths are thinking, what are their aspirations and how they wish to contribute for betterment of Arunachal�.
The first day of the ATAL Conclave witnessed an interactive session between the youths and representatives of the State Government.
Earlier, the Director of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, Shakti Sinha, delivered the keynote address on �Act East Policy � Transforming India�s North East�.
