FM Sitharaman announces developmental projects worth 1300 cr for tribal areas in Tripura

Nirmala Sitharaman, the Union Finance Minister, promised on Friday, August 27, that an Externally Aided Project (EAP) worth Rs 1,300 crore directed at boosting the quality of life of Tripura's indigenous groups would be sanctioned within 10 days. After launching about 11 projects in the Mohanpur area of Agartala, Tripura, the Union Finance Minister gave a speech at a programme. She said that for the Sustainable Livelihood and Infrastructure Development for Tripura's Tribal areas project, an amount of Rs 1,300 crore will be cleared in the 10 upcoming days. 

Finance Minister announces 1,300 crore development projects 

"The EAP, meant for the holistic development of the tribal population in Tripura, is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision and commitment for Antyodaya i.e. giving every person a respectful and dignified life," the Union Minister said on the first day of her visit to Tripura.

Nirmala Sitharaman also announced that two other projects worth over Rs 21 crore were cleared by the Centre on Friday morning itself. "Two projects worth over Rs 21 crores were cleared by the Centre on Friday morning itself." The projects she mentioned include the widening of state highways and a bunch of development projects for Agartala. The state highway widening is expected to be a Rs. 14.15 crore project while the Agartala development project is budgeted at Rs. 7.4 crore, as per the Finance Minister. These projects that have been announced are expected to bring in investment in Tripura in large amounts of crores. The investments will give a major boost to transport services in these regions, and also boost the local economy. 

Digital launch of water treatment plants; Nirmala Sitharaman's Tripura visit schedule 

The Union Finance Minister digitally launched three groundwater treatment plants funded by the Asian Development Bank as part of the North East Region Urban Development Project (NERUDP). The plants are situated at Rampur, Pragati, and Dukli. The project cost is Rs 20 crore in total. She announced that the plants have a total capacity of 22.40 million litres per day (MLD) and that they would provide fresh clean water in the Agartala Municipal Corporation area. Nirmala Sitharaman is in Tripura for a two-day visit. The Union Minister also paid a visit to Gandhigram's Hatipara Forest Complex, accompanied by Chief Minister Deb. She visited the Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFP) Centre and an agar plantation, where authorities briefed her on the Agar sector's potential in Tripura. In addition, she planted a seedling. Sitharaman is set to travel to Udaipur's Matabari temple and then to Killa village council's Dasarath Deb Memorial School Ground, where she will hold a meeting and interact with members of women-run Self-Help Groups. Before leaving the state, she would also set to flag off a mobile van of Tripura State Cooperative Bank Ltd to commemorate the 7th anniversary of the Pradhan Mantri Van Dhan Yojana.

Pradhan Mantri Van Dhan Yojana 7th anniversary 

On the occasion of the 7th anniversary of the Pradhan Mantri Van Dhan Yojana on Saturday, August 28, Finance Minister Sitharaman made some statements. She said that the JAM pipeline created through account holders’ consent-based linking of bank accounts with Aadhar cards and mobile numbers, is an essential part of the DI ecosystem and has enabled instant direct benefit transfer (DBT) under multiple schemes of the Government, to eligible beneficiaries for the same. She also stated that the underlying pillars of the Yojana – Banking, the Unbanked, Securing the Unsecured and Funding the Unfunded have enabled the adoption of a multistakeholder and collaborative approach to leverage technology for serving the underserved regions and people.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman's work at the micro and macro level 

With these statements and projects, FM Sitharaman has been emphasising development in marginalised communities while also working on sectors of India's macroeconomy. This week, the Minister has made a series of declarations in support of the National Monetisation Pipeline that had been announced. The scheme is being aggressively contested by Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi claims that monetisation will lead to the development of monopolies and that the government's goal is to create monopolies for three or four people specifically and implied that everyone knows who these monopolists are. To this, Nirmala Sitharaman has been responding to defend the economic scheme. 

With inputs from ANI

IMAGE: Nirmala Sitharaman Office - Twitter