PTI
MORAN (ASSAM), FEBRUARY 27
Development of road and rail connectivity as well as robust power and communication network will bring development, attract industries and give employment to youth in Assam, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Saturday.
Acknowledging connectivity is the biggest problem of the north east region, Gadkari said, “After our government came to power last year, we decided to work for the development of the region and set the National Highway Road Development Corporation”.
Stating that prosperity follows development of roads, the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways said besides surface connectivity, electricity and good mobile connection will attract industries to the N-E region, especially Assam.
Laying the foundation stone of four packages on NH-37 at Moran in Dibrugarh district of the state, Gadkari said the highest number of construction jobs would be given to local contractors and they would also be provided with machinery, mobilisation and transportation advance.
In the coming year, one-and-a-half lakh local workers would be employed in road construction work, he added.
The minister claimed that the four-lane work of the NH-37 would cost Rs 1, 200 crore, adding that it would be concrete roads so that maintenance work gets minimal.
The projects for making them four-lane are 18.40 km road from end of Nagaon bypass to Rangagara costing Rs 225.02 crore, 18.315 km from Rangagara to Kaliabor Tinali worth Rs 289.99 crore, 26.90 km from Demow to end of Moran bypass at Rs 385.55 crore and 19 km road from end of Moran bypass to Bogibeel junction near Lepetkatta costing Rs 330.30 crore
The Union minister said three other road projects, between Sreerampur and Dhubri along the Bhutan border and from Tinsukia to Arunachal Pradesh, have been started in Assam at a cost of Rs 4,000 crore.
In the next three months, five more projects will start on Karimganj bypass, in Silchar city, Silchar-Jiribam, Silchar-Badarpur roads, besides an automated weighing bridge on National Highway 31, Gadkari said.
To improve transportation infrastructure on the northern bank of the river benefiting the people of northern districts of Assam, he said the Dhakuakhana-Lakhimpur road was extended from Lakhimpur via NH-15 to NH37 in Jorhat via Majuli.
For improving river transport on the Brahmaputra, he said inland transport work would start soon. The minister also wants to develop tourism in the Northeast as 49 per cent of investments in the sector goes into employment generation.
Laying another foundation stone of a bridge at Dhakuakhana in Lakhimpur district over Brahmaputra, Gadkari said Rs 25,000 crore has been provided by the Centre for development of roads in Assam during the next five years. Similarly, Rs one lakh crore was allotted for road development in the N-E region, he said.
Construction of proposed four new bridges over river Brahmaputra in Assam by the Centre will improve road communication in the state, he added.
The minister laid the foundation stones of three other bridges, one of them at Majuli in Jorhat district connecting the world’s largest river island with Jorhat town.
Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari today said the Centre would invest Rs 25,000 crore for developing roads, bridges and waterways in poll-bound Assam over the next 2-3 years.
“We have given prime focus in developing road and water infrastructure in the Northeast and Assam. For this, the Centre through NHAI, PWD and NHIDCL will invest about Rs 25,000 crore in Assan over the 2-3 years,” Gadkari said at a press conference here.
Acknowledging connectivity is the biggest problem of the Northeast, he said, “After our government came to power last year, we decided to work for the development of the region and set the National Highway Road Development Corporation”.
The minister today laid foundation stone of four road projects with a total length of 82.6 km at an expenditure of Rs 1,200 crore.
“Two new highways from Sivasagar to North Lakhimpur via Disangmukh and from Jorhat to North Lakhimpur via Majuli will also be built. The total length of the projects will be 122 km and they will also have two major bridges over Brahmaputra,” Gadkari said.
The Ministry has been asked to prepare the DPR for the project, which is likely to cost over Rs 5,000 crore, he added.
“Besides, 624 km of roads will be added to the National Highway in Assam. Along with this, the preparation of DPR is in progress for the Dhubri-Phulbari bridge across Brahmaputra and the estimated cost for this will be Rs 3,000 crore,” Gadkari said.
Further 66 road projects are currently going on with a total length of 1,378 km and a combined investment of Rs 14,700 crore, he added.
The minister also said that the Centre was planning to announce 106 national waterways across the country, of which 19 will be in the northeast, including 11 in Assam.
The government is also working on developing Ro-Ro services between Dhubri and Hatsinghimari at a cost of Rs 80 crore, he said.
“This includes construction of two terminals and acquirement of two vessels. A DPR is being prepared to initiate Ro-Ro services at three more places in Assam over Brahmaputra,” Gadkari said.
The minister today also laid the foundation stone of a ship repair facility at Pandu port in Guwahati that will be completed by December, 2018 at an investment of Rs 51 crore.
“Pandu had a repair facility but it was abandoned in 1990. For this unit, the state government has provided us with 3.37 acres of land and this facility can be expanded to build ships also in future,” Gadkari said.
