SHILLONG: Is the Home Ministry in New Delhi trying to take control of the North Eastern Council (NEC) with the approval of the nomination of the Union Home Minister as the ex-officio chairman of the NEC.
The Union Home Minister, Rajnath Singh attended the two-day plenary meeting of the NEC held here in Shillong.
Tripura Chief Minister, Biplab Kumar Deb on Tuesday refused to say anything when he was asked if he was happy with the NEC being brought under the direct control of the Home Ministry.
He, however, said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not see North East as a conflict zone and he wanted to develop the region economically
“Since Narendra Modi Government came to power in the Centre, separate schemes worth Rs 54000 crores had been given to the North East,” he said
He also said that in a federal system there could be discussions on the issue and he sought time for addressing the concern.
He added that the Central Government was playing its role effectively I regarding development issues concerning the region and added that the NEC was a development body and addition of anything would not harm the council
It may be mentioned that the NEC is an apex regional planning body that comprises of governors and chief ministers of all the eight northeastern states as its members.
The Union cabinet last month approved the name of minister of state (Independent Charge) for the ministry of Development of North-eastern region (DoNER), Dr Jitendra Singh as vice chairman of the council.