‘DoNER approved Rs 16,332 crore as budget outlay from 2022 to 2026’

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: The Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) has approved a cumulative budget outlay of Rs 16,332 crore for various schemes aimed at accelerating development in the Northeast until March 31, 2026.

This was informed before the Lok Sabha by Dr. Sukanta Majumdar, Minister of State for DoNER, in response to an unstarred question raised by Assam MP Dilip Saikia and two other MPs. The question related to the total financial outlay under different schemes being implemented for the NE region.

MoS for DoNER Dr. Sukanta Majumdar, in his reply, stated that the financial outlay under different schemes included Rs 6,600 crore under the Prime Minister's Development Initiative for the North Eastern Region (PM-DevINE), Rs 2,718 crore for the North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS-Roads), Rs 3,796 for the NESIDS Other Than Roads Infrastructure (OTRI), Rs 1,968 crore for the Schemes of the North Eastern Council (NEC), and Rs 1,250 crore under Special Packages for Assam-with the total outlay coming to Rs 16,332 crore.

According to the minister, the central schemes under implementation include PM-DevINE with an outlay of Rs 6,600 crore for the four-year period from 2022-23 to 2025-26. This scheme focuses on infrastructure development and social uplift projects across the Northeast. Launched as a new Central Sector scheme in Budget 2022-23, it includes seven initial projects with Rs 1,500 crore allocated for the first phase.

The schemes under NESIDS (Roads) focus on building road infrastructure in remote areas, providing market access, and improving security. The outlay under the scheme is meant to provide specific gap funding in the construction of roads that are not getting covered under any other department of the government, i.e., the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the Department of Rural Development, the Border Roads Organisation, etc., with Rs 2,716 crore earmarked under NESIDS (Roads).

The NESIDS (OTRI) component, with a budget of Rs 3,796 crore, supports infrastructure in primary and secondary healthcare, education, aviation, telecom, and water supply.

Schemes of NEC, with a budget of Rs 1,968 crore, support regional development across all eight Northeast states, covering sectors such as bamboo, piggery, tourism, tertiary healthcare, and education.

The Special Packages for Assam include specific packages for its autonomous councils:

Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC): Rs 749.85 crore sanctioned for 65 projects under MoUs signed in 2003 and 2020.

Dima Hasao Autonomous Territorial Council (DHATC): Rs 195 crore approved for 14 projects under a Rs 200 crore package.

Karbi Anglong Autonomous Territorial Council (KAATC): Under the new Memorandum of Settlement signed on September 4, 2021, for the KAATC package, out of a sum of Rs. 500 crore (Rs. 100 crore per annum for 5 years) for the development of infrastructure in the KAATC area, 2 projects worth Rs. 167.96 crore have been sanctioned.

Also Read: DoNER Secures ₹4.48 Lakh Crore Investment Proposals for Northeast

Also Watch: