ITANAGAR, Feb 1: Welcoming Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s proposal for revamping the National Bamboo Mission with an allocation of Rs 1290 crore to promote the bamboo sector in a holistic manner, Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Thursday said Arunachal Pradesh would be one of the highest gainers from the announcement.
The chief minister hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the union finance minister for rolling out the “new India” budget, which he described as “comprehensive and holistic in every sense.”
Pema further hailed the union budget for giving special impetus to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) population by proposing to have Ekalavya schools, at par with Navodaya Vidyalayas, in every block of the country with more than 50% ST population and at least 20,000 tribal people by 2022.
He extended gratitude to the PM and the FM for proposing to construct a tunnel under Se-la Pass in Arunachal Pradesh, saying it was a longstanding demand of the state government.
“This tunnel will serve as a great relief to the denizens of Tawang district and also multiply tourist flow in the region,” Pema said.
The CM while appreciating the union budget for increasing the target of providing free LPG connections to eight crore poor women, said that the move reflected the union government’s sincerity to its ‘sabka saath sabka vikas’ code of conduct.
Hailing the finance minister for focusing on strengthening the agriculture sector, Pema said the budget signified that “the union government is committed to doubling farmers’ income by 2022.”
He also welcomed other announcements, such as Rs 5 lakh medical insurance cover per year for 10 crore families across the country; increase in digital intensity in education; construction of two crore more toilets under Swachh Bharat Mission; proposal of having escalators, wi-fi and CCTVs at all railways stations; incorporating the AMRUT programme to focus on water supply to all households in 500 cities; and expansion of airports by five times from the existing 124 airports. (CMO)
