NEW DELHI, June 11 � Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said that opportunity should be explored to turn the North Eastern States into an organic region, besides proposing annual tours of the region by students from all over the country.
The Prime Minister, who was replying to the Motion of Thanks on the President�s address, lauded the Sikkim Government�s initiative to turn the state into an organic state. There is a need to turn the entire North Eastern Region into an organic region. �When Sikkim can do it, why can�t the North Eastern States do it,� he argued.
�With the help of modern agricultural technique, we can do it and ensure that the entire North Eastern Region becomes organic,� said Modi in his hour-long address.
In the Rajya Sabha, Modi wondered for how long the region can be left to its fate. He said that since there are over 20,000 colleges in the country and students go on excursions annually, �Can we look at the possibility of sending these students to the North-east?�
When students from 30,000 colleges visit the region for eight-ten days, then it would boost tourism, besides promoting national integrity, he said.
He further reiterated that when he was the chief minister of Gujarat, he had proposed to every North Eastern State to send 200 police women to Gujarat for two years. They would have got jobs and returned to their states as ideal examples of national integration.
Earlier, participating in the debate, Badruddin Ajmal threw broad hints about the AIUDF being open to the proposal of supporting NDA regime. �Whosoever invites us with love, we will go,� he said.
Referring to the problem of �D� voters and illegal infiltration, which also found place in the President�s address, Ajmal, calling for sealing of the Indo-Bangladesh border, said that the border fencing has not brought the desired results, as illegal infiltration is still continuing.
However, he pointed out that during two terms of the AGP rule, when NDA was in power at the Centre, a total of 6724 illegal aliens were detected but only 500-odd could be deported. Similarly during 1996-2000, during AGP�s second term, 902 illegal migrants were identified out of which only 102 could be deported.
�Our Party�s stand is that not a single foreigner should be allowed to stay but they should be deported according to provisions of the law,� the AIUDF president said.
