Excelsior Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Jan 20: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh today announced “Make in Northeast” initiative beginning with a comprehensive tourism plan for the region.
He also announced the decision to appoint a Brand Ambassador who ,he said, could personify the heritage and identity of Northeast and at the same time,inspire the rest of the countrymen to “look east” and “act east”.
Chairing a joint meeting of the senior officers of Ministry of DoNER and the Union Ministry of Tourism, Dr Jitendra Singh said, “Make in Northeast” initiative, inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” concept, will in the long run seek to promote exclusive Northeast expertise in areas like tea processing, organic farming, food processing, exploitation of wind power through wind mills, AYUSH, wellness therapies like spas, etc. A detailed brochure for investors will also be prepared and released across the country to encourage investment in Northeast, he added.
In order to develop Northeast as a destination for investors, holiday seekers and tourists, Dr Jitendra Singh said, Rs 50 crore mega circuit and Rs 25 crore mega destination projects of Tourism Ministry will also be pursued.
Soon after taking over the charge of the Ministry of DoNER two months ago, Dr Jitendra Singh recalled, the first decision taken by him was to plan a 2015 Calendar for the Ministry of DoNER based on theme of Northeast festivals with each month displaying the traditional local festival of each region in that particular season. When circulated across the country, this annual calendar would serve as a document to introduce the tradition, culture and tourism of the region through one single document, he added.
Revealing future plans, Dr Jitendra Singh said, his Ministry will soon organize an event in Mumbai for interaction with representatives of film industry in order to bring awareness about the vast potential for location shooting in Northeast which can be done with much greater ease and cost effectiveness without travelling abroad. It is strange, he observed, that the only film maker from Mumbai who had, with commitment, focused on depicting Northeast through cinema was Late Dev Anand and therefore, the glory of visuals from Northeast locations needs to be reintroduced to the present generation of film makers as well.
One of the important objectives of “Make in Northeast” initiative, Dr Jitendra Singh said, will be not only to generate revenue for Northeast but also to create job opportunities to prevent the exodus of youth which is presently taking place from the region to the rest of the country.
The meeting, among others, was attended by Secretary (Tourism) Dr Lalit K. Panwar, Additional Secretary Girish Shankar, Joint Secretary B.Suman, Secretary (DoNER) Vijay Kumar and Joint Secretary A.M.Singh.
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