Lok Sabha Question No. 69 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-18
Subject: Projects undertaken in North East
Ministry: DEVELOPMENT OF NORTH EASTERN REGION
Asked by: Raju Bista

## Government of India Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No.69

To be answered on Monday, July 18, 2022/Ashadha 27, 1944 (Saka)

## QUESTION

## Projects undertaken in North East

## 69. SHRI RAJU BISTA:

Will the Minister of DEVELOPMENT OF NORTH EASTERN REGION be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has any detailed statistics as to the number of projects undertaken since 2014 onwards for connectivity and development in the North Eastern States;
- (b) if so, the details thereof, year-wise; and
- (c) the present status of completion/pendency of projects, State/Project-wise?

## ANSWER

## The Minister of the Ministry of  Development of North Eastern Region [Shri G. Kishan Reddy]

- (a)  to  (c)  Fifty  four  non-exempted  Central  Ministries/Departments  are  mandated  to spend  at  least  10%  of  their  Gross  Budgetary  Support  (GBS)  for  Central  Sector  and Centrally  Sponsored  Schemes  in  the  North  Eastern  Region  (NER).  The  details  of Budget Estimates, Revised  Estimates  and  Actual Expenditure  under  10% GBS  since financial year 2014-15 is given in Table 1 below:
2. Several infrastructure  development projects including connectivity projects have been taken up by the concerned Ministries and Departments of the Central Government in  the  North  Eastern  Region  (NER).  These  relate  to  improving  air  connectivity,  rail connectivity, road connectivity,  waterway connectivity,  power connectivity  and telecom connectivity in the NER. These inter-alia include:
- i. Air  connectivity :  Total 28 projects  have  been completed from 2016-17 to 2021-22 with  the  approved  cost  of  Rs.  975.58  crore  and  completion  cost  of  Rs.  979.07  crore. There are 15 ongoing projects with sanctioned amount of Rs. 2,212.30 crore.
- ii. Rail connectivity : As on 01.04.2022, Ministry of Railways has sanctioned 19 projects costing Rs.77,930 crore for 1,909 km length falling fully/ partly in North Eastern Region including  those  sanctioned  since  2014,  which  are  at  different  stages  of  planning/ approval/  execution,  out  of  which  409  km  length  has  been  commissioned  and  an expenditure  of  Rs.30,312  crore  incurred  upto  March,  2022.  These  include  (i)  14  New

| Table 1: Budget Estimates (BE), Revised Estimates (RE) and Actual Expenditure under 10%GBS (Rs. in crore)                                           | Table 1: Budget Estimates (BE), Revised Estimates (RE) and Actual Expenditure under 10%GBS (Rs. in crore)                                           | Table 1: Budget Estimates (BE), Revised Estimates (RE) and Actual Expenditure under 10%GBS (Rs. in crore)                                           | Table 1: Budget Estimates (BE), Revised Estimates (RE) and Actual Expenditure under 10%GBS (Rs. in crore)                                           |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Year                                                                                                                                                | Budget Estimate                                                                                                                                     | Revised Estimate Actual Expenditure                                                                                                                 |                                                                                                                                                     |
| 36,107.56                                                                                                                                           | 27,359.17                                                                                                                                           | 2014-15 24,819.18                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     |
| 29,087.93                                                                                                                                           | 29,669.22                                                                                                                                           | 2015-16 28,673.73                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     |
| 29,124.79                                                                                                                                           | 32,180.08                                                                                                                                           | 2016-17 29,367.90                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     |
| 43,244.64                                                                                                                                           | 40,971.69                                                                                                                                           | 2017-18 39,753.44                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     |
| 47,994.88                                                                                                                                           | 47,087.95                                                                                                                                           | 2018-19 46,054.80                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     |
| 59,369.90                                                                                                                                           | 53,374.19                                                                                                                                           | 2019-20 48,533.80                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     |
| 60,112.11                                                                                                                                           | 51,270.90                                                                                                                                           | 2020-21 48,563.80                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     |
| 68,020.24                                                                                                                                           | 68,440.26                                                                                                                                           | 2021-22 70,874.32                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     |
| Total 3,73,062.05                                                                                                                                   |                                                                                                                                                     | 3,50,353.46 3,36,640.97                                                                                                                             |                                                                                                                                                     |
| Source: Statement 11 of Union Budget, various years Note: Actual Expenditure figures are provisional and subject to vetting of Ministry of Finance. | Source: Statement 11 of Union Budget, various years Note: Actual Expenditure figures are provisional and subject to vetting of Ministry of Finance. | Source: Statement 11 of Union Budget, various years Note: Actual Expenditure figures are provisional and subject to vetting of Ministry of Finance. | Source: Statement 11 of Union Budget, various years Note: Actual Expenditure figures are provisional and subject to vetting of Ministry of Finance. |

Line Projects covering a length of 1,181 km at a cost of Rs.61,520 crore, out of which 361 km length has been commissioned and an expenditure of Rs.27,458 crore incurred upto March, 2022; and (ii) 5 Doubling/Multitracking Projects covering a length of 728 km at a cost of Rs.16,410 crore, out of which 48 km length has been commissioned and an expenditure of Rs.2,854 crore incurred upto March, 2022.

iii. Road Connectivity :  A total of 4016.48 km costing Rs.58,385 crore, are ongoing in NER. These projects were undertaken during the last 5 years. The completed projects in  NER  cover  a  length  of  3099.50  km  at  a  cost  of  Rs.15,570.44  crore.  The  ongoing projects  are  likely  to  be  completed  by  May  2024.  The  major  ongoing  Capital  Road Connectivity projects in NER include the 4 Laning of Dimapur- Kohima Road (62.9 km) in  Nagaland;  4  laning  of  Nagaon  bypass  to  Holongi  (167  km)  in  Arunachal  Pradesh; Alternate two-lane Highway from Bagrakote to Pakyong (NH-717A) (152 km) in Sikkim; 2  laning  of  Aizawl  -  Tuipang  NH-54  (351  km)  in  Mizoram;  and  4  laning  of  Imphal  Moreh section of NH-39 (20 km) and 2-laning of 75.4 km in Manipur.

iv. Waterway  connectivity :  River  Brahmaputra  from  Dhubri  (Bangladesh  Border)  to Sadiya (891 km) was declared as National Waterway-2 (NW-2) in 1988. The waterway is being developed with fairway of required depth and width, day and night navigation aids and terminals. The facilities created and planned would cost Rs. 461 crore during 5 years (2020-2025). River Barak was declared as National Waterway-16 (NW-16) in the year 2016. It connects Silchar, Karimganj and Badarpur in Cachar valley of Assam with Haldia and Kolkata ports through Indo-Bangladesh Protocol (IBP) Route. The facilities created and planned would cost Rs.145 crore during 5 years (2020-2025).

v. Power  connectivity :  Ministry  of  Power  has  also  undertaken  power  generation (hydro/thermal) projects since 2014 in the North Eastern States. Further, the transmission  and  distribution  network  has  also  been  strengthened  in  these  North Eastern  States.  03  Hydro  Electric  Projects  (above  25  MW)  totaling  to  740  MW  have been undertaken in the North Eastern States. A Gas based Power Project in the State of Assam viz. Lakhwa Replacement Power Project of 69.755 MW capacity (7 x 9.965 MW)  by  M/s  Assam  Power  Generation  Corporation  Ltd.  was  commissioned  on 14.02.2018.  Further,  Government  of  India  has  launched  various  schemes  to  enable States including North Eastern States to strengthen their power distribution systems by providing funding for creation/augmentation of sub-transmission & distribution infrastructure along with metering and IT enablement of distribution infrastructures etc. For  strengthening  of  transmission  network  in  the  North-Eastern  Region,  Inter-State Transmission  projects have  been undertaken,  which includes  new  transmission  lines, extension/upgradation of existing substations, augmentation of transformation capacity, reconductoring of transmission lines etc. Further, Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. (PGCIL) is executing two major Intra State power transmission and distribution schemes viz.  (i)  North  Eastern  Region  Power  System  Improvement  Project  (NERPSIP)  for  Six States (Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura and Nagaland) for strengthening of the Intra-State Transmission and Distribution Systems (33kV and above) sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs.6,700 crore; and (ii) Comprehensive Scheme  for Strengthening  of  Transmission  and  Distribution  System  in  Arunachal  Pradesh  and Sikkim sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs.9,129.32 crore.

vi. Telecom  connectivity :  Department  of  Telecommunications  has  also  undertaken several projects in  the  North  Eastern  States  for  strengthening  telecom  connectivity  in the region, which, interalia , include (i) Mobile Services in uncovered villages in Assam, Manipur, Mizoram,  Nagaland,  Tripura, Sikkim, and  Arunachal  Pradesh  (National Highways only) and seamless coverage along National Highway; (ii) Mobile connectivity in Meghalaya and along National Highways on 4G Technology; (iii) Mobile connectivity in Arunachal Pradesh and 2 Districts of Assam; (iv) Bharat Net and Wi-Fi Connectivity for Village Panchayats in North Eastern Region; and (v) Hiring of 10 Gbps International Bandwidth  for  Internet  Connectivity  to  Agartala  from  BSCCL,  Bangladesh  via  Cox Bazar.  In the North Eastern States, 1,358 towers covering  1,246 villages  have  been installed and providing services.

3. In  addition,  Ministry  of  Development  of  North  Eastern  Region  (MDoNER)  is implementing various schemes/packages viz. North East Special Infrastructure Development  Scheme  (NESIDS),  Non-Lapsable  Central  Pool  of  Resources  (NLCPR) Scheme, Special Packages of Assam [Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), Dima Hasao Autonomous  Territorial  Council  (DHATC)  and  Karbi  AnglongAutonomous  Territorial Council (KAATC)], Hill Area Development Programme (HADP), Social and Infrastructure Development Fund (SIDF),Schemes of NEC (North Eastern Council) and North  East  Road  Sector  Development  Scheme  (NERSDS),  for  the  development  of

North Eastern Region. Under these developmental schemes/packages,  1,350 projects worth Rs.15,867.01crore, including connectivity projects, have been sanctioned during the financial years 2014-15 to 2021-22. The year-wise details of the projects sanctioned are as under:

| (Rs. in crore)   | (Rs. in crore)   | (Rs. in crore)                                      | (Rs. in crore)                                      |
|------------------|------------------|-----------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------|
| S. No.           | Financial Year   | Projects sanctioned under schemes of MDoNER and NEC | Projects sanctioned under schemes of MDoNER and NEC |
|                  |                  | No.                                                 | Cost                                                |
| 1                | 2014-15          | 71                                                  | 1,500.40                                            |
| 2                | 2015-16          | 126                                                 | 1,564.53                                            |
| 3                | 2016-17          | 152                                                 | 1,925.45                                            |
| 4                | 2017-18          | 274                                                 | 3,114.46                                            |
| 5                | 2018-19          | 70                                                  | 1,340.33                                            |
| 6                | 2019-20          | 174                                                 | 1,983.91                                            |
| 7                | 2020-21          | 206                                                 | 1,685.31                                            |
| 8                | 2021-22          | 277                                                 | 2,752.62                                            |
|                  | Total            | 1,350                                               | 15,867.01                                           |

The State-wise status of the projects sanctioned under the Schemes of MDoNER and NEC during the financial years 2014-15 to 2021-22 is as under:

| (Rs. in crore)   | (Rs. in crore)    | (Rs. in crore)      | (Rs. in crore)      | (Rs. in crore)     | (Rs. in crore)     | (Rs. in crore)   | (Rs. in crore)   |
|------------------|-------------------|---------------------|---------------------|--------------------|--------------------|------------------|------------------|
| S. No.           | State             | Projects sanctioned | Projects sanctioned | Projects completed | Projects completed | Projects ongoing | Projects ongoing |
|                  |                   | No.                 | Cost                | No.                | Cost               | No.              | Cost             |
| 1                | Arunachal Pradesh | 174                 | 1,895.56            | 49                 | 318.04             | 125              | 1,577.52         |
| 2                | Assam             | 197                 | 2,830.41            | 29                 | 287.63             | 168              | 2,542.78         |
| 3                | Manipur           | 235                 | 2,294.07            | 63                 | 795.34             | 172              | 1,498.73         |
| 4                | Meghalaya         | 111                 | 1,512.77            | 24                 | 130.84             | 87               | 1,381.93         |
| 5                | Mizoram           | 152                 | 1,314.22            | 53                 | 372.82             | 99               | 941.40           |
| 6                | Nagaland          | 187                 | 1,965.69            | 45                 | 241.4              | 142              | 1,724.29         |
| 7                | Sikkim            | 67                  | 808.51              | 17                 | 182.82             | 50               | 625.69           |
| 8                | Tripura           | 76                  | 1,010.31            | 9                  | 142.04             | 67               | 868.27           |
| 9                | Other Agency*     | 151                 | 2,235.47            | 56                 | 742.06             | 95               | 1,493.41         |
|                  | Total             | 1,350               | 15,867.01           | 345                | 3,212.99           | 1005             | 12654.02         |

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