Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said the Northeast India region can emerge as a hub for rubber production. The Central Government has planned rubber plantations on a total of 2 lakh hectare in the NE states over five years, he said.
The minister for Commerce and Industry, Textiles, Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution was addressing the ‘Destination Tripura - Investment Summit’ through video conferencing on Thursday.
Pointing out that Tripura is the second largest producer of rubber in the country with 30,000 ha cultivation, Goyal called upon the State Government to be the first off the block and take advantage as the early harvester to expand rubber plantations in the state.
Four major tyre companies represented by Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association (ATMA) have together undertaken to contribute Rs 1,000 crore for rubber plantation development in 200,000 hectare land in the eight states of Northeast India, over a period of five years.
A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Rubber Board and ATMA on March 1. Participating tyre companies together transferred Rs 12 crore to the account set up by Rubber Board on May 20. Funds provided by the tyre companies are being used for procuring planting materials for commencing planting in 2021.
Observing that Bamboo cultivation is another major resource in the NER, Goyal said Tripura is home to the largest bamboo flooring unit.
“Tripura has the potential to emerge as the country’s hub of Agarbatti Industry and make India Aatmanirbhar in Bamboo, often called as Green Gold, Industry,” he said.
The minister said that the PM has accorded priority to the ‘Focus North-East’ programme and the ‘Make in India’ programme has been implemented here as the ‘Make in North-East’ programme.
“A dedicated Northeast Desk of Invest India has been set up, improved infrastructure and promoted industry,” Goyal said.
Lauding the development journey of Tripura under the leadership of Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb, Goyal said: “The state government has been working tirelessly giving priority to 3 ‘N’s in administration, namely Niyat, Niti & Niyam… Tripura is the 4th literate state in the NE, has a thriving handlooms industry, 1.36 lakh weavers in Tripura, Tripura jackfruit has been exported to London.”
Goyal also said that the Centre is encouraging usage of Agro-textiles & Geotechnical textiles in the NE region through its dedicated schemes.
“With improved connectivity through Air, Rail, Road & Waterways, the so called geographical isolation of the State is a thing of the past. The state is an integral part of multimodal connectivity now,” he said.
The cross-border Agartala-Akhaura (Bangladesh) rail project worth Rs 972 crore will help promote exports, he said.
“With Agartala airport emerging as the second busiest airport in the NE region, Tripura will act as a Gateway to the North East,” he added.
The minister also lauded the state government’s initiatives for Investment Promotion, including the single window portal- SWAAGAT, Capital subsidy (30%), Power subsidy (50%), full reimbursement of State GST and four per cent interest subvention.
Goyal termed it as “one of best investment packages in the country.” Stating that the Investment Summit will help Tripura realise its true potential, he hoped the Conference will help investors become partners in the development journey of the state.
Expressing his shock and condolences on the untimely demise of CDS, General Bipin Rawat, Goyal quoted him, “We seek neither कृतज्ञता (gratitude) nor तालियाँ (applause) because we firmly believe in “ख़ामोशी से बनाते रहो पहचान अपनी, हवाये खुद तुम्हारा तराना गाएंगी !” (We seek neither gratitude nor applause; through silence let us make ourselves known, the whole world will come at your feet on their own.”
