Collaboration not confrontation between Centre, States is mantra for nation’s development: Modi
Collaboration and not confrontation should be the basic mantra for development, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday while giving out a strong message for a cooperative Team India. Addressing a large gathering at Burnpur where he inaugurated the modernised portion of more-than-a-century-old IISCO steel plant, Modi said, “Only a united Team India can ensure progress for Hindustan.”
“As a Chief Minister I had experienced discrimination so when I became the Prime Minister I decided that Delhi and the State will run the show together,” he said amid a thunderous applause.
“Prime Minister and Chief Ministers are parts of the same Team India and they would take the country ahead together,” he said. Hammering home the point that healthy federalism could sustain itself only amid mutual cooperation, the PM said the solution of Indo-Bangla border issues was a case in point.
“There was not a single State that voted against the bill in Parliament,” he said, adding, “Both the Centre and the States stood shoulder-to shoulder to pass the Bill which gave effect to the India-Bangladesh accord.”
Similarly, he said that Rs 17,000 crore IISCO plant would not have come up in its new avtar had the Chief Ministers hindered progress of the modernisatin process. The new plant which had already begun trial production had the second largest blast furnace in the country.
The PM said it was during the NDA regime the states were witnessing an equitable distribution of wealth. Also, he said NITI Ayog was the product of his Government’s true belief in federalism, adding that all the States were partners to the Ayog.
He maintained that in a parliamentary democracy political parties are important but nation is always above the party and so the governments should work shoulder-to-shoulder to take the country ahead.
Earlier in her speech Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made a strong pitch for healthy and cooperative centre-State relations, insisting politics will continue and so will development. “When we bicker the country goes backward and when we work together the country surges ahead,” she said.
It was for the second consecutive day on Sunday that the PM and the CM were sharing a common platform after a long period of coldness in their relationship.
Upgrading the Manmohan Singh Government’s “look East” slogan where Bengal and eastern India featured in a big way. The PM gave a call for “Act East” with an apparent import for an “east centric” development for the world.
“Unless the northeastern states, Jharkhand, Orissa, Bihar and not the least Bengal and Kolkata develops there is no hope for this Act East policy,” he said, adding, “How despite having skilled labour, huge natural resources and fertile lands eastern India lagged far behind than the West.”
“We have to work towards bringing both the parts of the country on par,” he said adding, “Eastern India was the perfect place for the second Green Revolution to happen.
Taking a dig at the UPA-II Government, the PM said there was a time when decision to distribute coal blocks were taken by individual leaders, but today coal blocks are distributed through auctioning and the royalty goes to the States.
“During the general elections all the parties attacked each other but one thing was common in those attacks that they talked about various scams. But today there is no story of coal scam but stories of coal block auction through which the locals are being benefitted,” he said.
The PM spoke of a Foundation that would soon come up in coal districts so that some portion of the coal royalty went to these foundations in order to enable the locals get the benefit of the royalty thus received.
Giving an account of how the country had developed in past one year, the PM said, “Till a year ago the world had written the nation’s economy off as a sinking one. But today the rating agencies like the IMF, World Bank have rated India as the fastest growing economy.”
Driving home the concept of value addition the PM said, “We have identified three sectors for development: Fertile land, Mineral zone and 125 crore skilled workers. In each case we have to add value to ensure development. We have to produce profit yielding crops, use minerals for new products and encourage the skilled Indians to excel in their fields of work.”
“Today we are exporting iron ores to China and importing steel from there. Then where is the sense of having iron ore reserves if we do not produce steel ourselves” he asked.