NEW DELHI, June 28? In a fresh bid to market North-East in the corporate world, Department for Development of North Eastern Region (DONER) and Indian Chambers of Commerce (ICC) have joined hands to organise a ?North East Business Summit? in Mumbai on July 19 and 20. Billed as the biggest-ever initiative to woo investors to the ?resource-rich? North-East, the two-day summit would see captains of industries interacting with top policy makers. Central Ministers and Chief Ministers of the region. In attendance would be senior Central Ministers including L.K.Advani, Union Finance Minister, Yashwant Sinha, External Affairs Minister, Yaswant Singh, Union Power Minister, Suresh Prabhu among others. To tell the businessworld their side of the story Hindusthan Levers Limited (HLL), Nortel Network, ICICI would be at hand. So would be the Chief Ministers of the North Eastern States including Sikkim, who would all be making separate presentations.
Addressing a press conference here today, the Minister for DONER said that efforts were on to integrate the South East Asian countries by organising a South East Asian Economic Summit in August in Guwahati with dignitaries from all neighbouring countries. The initiative being taken jointly by DONER, ICC and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FICCI). Underlining the need to hold an economic survey in the North-East, Sri Shourie said that similar summits would be held in all the metros of the country to bring an awareness about the region among the business community. There is a change in the attitude among the North East State Governments and there is a change of focus to economic development. The State Governments have realised that grievance mongering is not going to get them anywhere and that the need of the hour is to spruce up to get investments.
The need for investments has become even more essential as resources of the Central and State Government have run out. About Rs 48,000 crore is disbursed by the Centre to the States and yet there is no accountability, the Minister said. The Minister also lashed out against militancy saying that there was no ideology behind terrorism anywhere and certainly not in the North-East. Sri Shourie charged that militants destroyed lives of two generations in the North-East, he charged. The Minister was pointing out how difficult it was proving for the Government to woo investors because an impression has been created in the minds of investors the region was trouble-prone.