The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh has said that the Government of India plans to focus on road sector in the Northeast in a big way in order to address the issue of poor connectivity in the region. This was disclosed here today by Dr. Jitendra Singh when a delegation of Manipur based "Socio-Economic Development Organization" (SEDO) called on him with the request to consider the proposal for an alternative and shorter inter- State connecting link between Manipur and Assam by means of a road from Churachandpur district headquarter Tuibong to Jiribam. Dr. Jitendra Singh said, the emphasis will not only be on constructing new roads and widening the existing roads but also on laying down a network of inter-state roads which were hitherto not owned by any of the respective States and were often referred to as “orphan roads”.
The members of the SEDO delegation led by Shri Letkho Haokip handed over to Dr. Jitendra Singh a memorandum and a letter of recommendation from Shri Thangso Baihe, Lok Sabha Member of Parliament. According to the memorandum, the existing link between Manipur and Assam through a road from Imphal to Silchar is about 250 kms long and also has a large traffic load. In case an alternative road from Tuibong to Jiribam is constructed, it will be possible to connect the two States through a link which would be less than 150 kms. The memorandum submitted to the Minister requested for this road project to be taken up under Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resource (NLCPR) for the year 2015-16. This will not only help in improving the connectivity but would also help in bringing all the underdeveloped regions closer to the mainstream. According to the members of the deputation, they had approached the Government of Manipur for inclusion of the project in the State Priority List of NLCPR for 2015-16 and, according to them, it has also been recommended to the Ministry of DoNER. Once completed, the road will help in connecting far-flung sub divisional villages to other destinations where presently there is no other means of transport except foot tracks.