3-day NE river fest begins in Roing

ROING (Arunachal Pradesh), February 24: The millennium tourism bonanza for Northeast, Brahmaputra Darshan today got off to a spectacular start at Dibang Ghat along the majestic river, 25 km from here, opening a new chapter for the region's economic growth and self-reliance, reports PTI. The three-day river festival, first of its kind in the region, was formally declared open by Home Minister LK Advani who immersed a 'kalash' of Sindhu water into the mighty Brahmaputra, the lifeline of the region, symbolising national unity and emotional integration. In his address, Advani said that the Vajpayee government has vowed to provide Surajya (good governance) in the country. He said the principle characteristics of the governance include providing vital security cover especially in border regions of North east and Ladakh. Referring to the law-and-order situation in the region, he said while Assam, Nagaland, Manipur and Tripura were "disturbed", Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Sikkim were comparatively peaceful. He said in Arunachal Pradesh, peace was, however, "not upto the mark as twin districts Tirap and Changland have been declared disturbed areas recently." "This declaration could be extended," he said. Advani said in order to promote tourism in the region, he would hold the meeting with Tourism Minister Ananth Kumar next week on the reconsideration of all permits for the visitors, coming to the place. The Ziro airstrip would be extended in the near future to allow commercial aircraft to land there, he said.