Our Correspondent ● Kolkata: Tripura chief minister (CM), Manik Sarkar, has rued the lack of quality National Highways (NHs) in his state to connect with the rest of the country. He said: “Though the foundation has been laid to convert the NH44 to double lane, it needs more expansion.”
Speaking on the sidelines of an event in the city, Sarkar said that Tripura is a landlocked state and has to depend on Assam for the chicken neck connectivity with the rest of the country. He highlighted the importance of connecting the state with mainland India through Bangladesh. Sarkar said: “Work in going on to convert the meter gauge railway to broad gauge from Sabroom to Agartala and this is expected to be completed by March 2016. Other parts of the state will also be connected by mid-2018 and the state government will extend all support in this regard. The Railway Board is happy with our support.”
The Tripura CM said that getting land for business is not a problem in the state and the revenue department will help will all relevant documents. However, the buyer has to purchase land directly from the owners and government will not mediate in this regard, he added.
Speaking on insurgency, Sarkar said that it is largely under control because of the active support and measures taken by the Bangladesh government. He believed in not depending entirely on security forces but to take support of the people and follow a holistic approach comprising ideological, political and social dimensions to deal with insurgency.
