I was an attendee at "Vibrant Gujarat" show at Gandhinagar this January. Modi built two huge convention halls of gigantic proportions. One was almost ready and the other was under construction. Temporary flex print was pasted to look it complete. We could not make out the difference. The place was aptly named 'Mahanta Mandir', and a huge statue of Mahatma stood in between, with his signature 'danda'. A 'dandi kutir', shaped like a salt mound was Modi's 'darbaar'. He met all the delegations there and MoUs were signed in his presence. This year MoUs worth Rs. 30 lakh crores (US$ 672 Bn approx) were signed. We (NEDFi) organised a concurrent Invest NE Show there.
When Modi came to know about our presence, he called our CMD. He had to wait, in queue, no doubt. Once his turn came, Modi received him with apology and asked if there was any MoU to be signed. We had none; so Modi immediately changed track and showered praise on NER states like Sikkim which has done marvelously well in the tourism sector. Modi was BJP's i/c of NER during Bajpayee's time. He offered to train 300 policemen from NER at his cost to become tourist police. Idea is, Gujaratis are compulsive travellers, and they need some comfort like that of security, vegetarian food, some guidance in Guajarati language to start moving to unchartered territories. These NER police personnel will be trained in these aspects and once they are back to their respective states, they will be able to receive, escort the Gujarati tourists. Brilliant! Gujaratis were a seafaring people. They had the Indus valley legacy. Even during Mughal times, Surat was the leading port of India. It used to be transit point for Haj pilgrims. It was a very lucrative business. Mughal emperors' wives used to invest heavily on ships and it was their side business to invest the huge allowances emperors used to grant to his wives. Noor Jehan owned the biggest vessel 'Al Rahimi'- a ship that could carry 1500 people. It was captured by the Portuguese and that led to the seizure of Surat by Emperor Jehangir. I was fortunate to study engineering in Morvi. By the way, I survived a Dam Burst that killed 55000 people in one day. The reconstruction work the Gujus did was fantastic, even Bhuj rehabilitation is remarkable. This year in connection with my daughter's admission in NID, I travelled 4-5 times and went as far as Dwarka by car to see the development. Roads are all weather and four-lane. The state is progressing at break-neck speed. Jamnagar has World's biggest single refinery of 50 Mn MT, adjacent to that Essar has another big one. Essar is also building a huge Petrochemical complex. Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation is now as big as Oil India Ltd. It has exploration blocks, trans-state Pipelines, CNG stations in the state. Narmada water has changed the rural economy. Agriculture has grown 10% per annum in last 10 years. It is the largest FDI destination in India. Sabarmati river front project is Rs. 23000 cr project, that will propel Ahmedabad into the big city league. We could not see any beggar there. Modi is building a 300 km perimeter ring road to take urban development to a higher trajectory. The US$ 90 Bn Delhi-Mumbai Industrial corridor is going to benefit Gujarat Max. What Assam can learn? Our leaders should learn to think big. We must plan following big ones:- 1. Dredge river Brahmaputra, reclaim 1.5 million hectres of fertile land, build irrigation systems, river front projects, water export 2. Build a mega city to house at least 10 million people by 2030, this will act as a centre of consumption, trade, commerce, education, healthcare, tourism 3. Build two express ways on both banks of the river, build a bullet train system like China, which will travel at 350 kmph. Sadiya to Dhubri will be 2 hour journey. 4. Build an Industrial Corridor from Dhubri to Sadiya or Kokrajhar to Jonai, so that when India opens up the land route to China-ASEAN, we are ready. 5. Convert Assam Gas Company to something like GSPC, we have enough oil experts like Mr B C Bora, NN Gogogi, Ajit Hazarika to guide us. This company will explore oil-gas, refine, transport and add wealth to the state. Gujarat is our 'damaad's state. We must take advantage of the old linkages and build new relationships. I volunteer my services for this august task. May be we can brand our state as 'GOD's OWN SOSURAL".........:) Manoj On Wed, Mar 23, 2011 at 7:08 PM, Chan Mahanta <cmaha...@gmail.com> wrote: > > *** But you are speaking of the enlightened, Gujaratis and their Gujarat. > They have apparently > been able to do what the rest can't, stand up-to Dilli. That was your > lament about Assam. > > My curiosity too is about Assam. > > What is it about Assam that cannot get the money to attract the Nanos of > India > or the NRI investors to replicate the Gujarati boom? > > And create those Kharkhowa Naren Modis to stand up to Dilli, that you wish > for > as I do ? > > :-) > > > > > > > > > > > On Mar 23, 2011, at 8:24 AM, Dilip Deka wrote: > > > The prescription is there right in the original article. Money talks. > Gujarat quietly built up its economic might and now the state is a power to > recognize. Gujarat's is known as a business friendly government. Everyone > has heard the Tata Nano factory story. Everyone knows whose gain and whose > loss it was. > > When the government, the business and the workers all row in the same > direction, in unison, the boat moves faster. > > Dilip > > ================================================== > > > > --- On Mon, 3/21/11, Chan Mahanta <cmaha...@gmail.com> wrote: > > >I wish Assam could face upto Delhi the same way. > > > > *** Any thoughts on WHY it is NOt so now, or HOW it could be > accomplished? > > > > On Mar 20, 2011, at 10:27 PM, Dilip Deka wrote: > > > > > Gujarat is too powerful for Delhi to mess with. Gujarati people, the > state government and the NRIs investing in Gujarat sing the same tune - Help > the economy prosper and everyone gets benefit from it. > > > I can bet Delhi will have to retract. Delhi and the Congress bigwigs > tried to remove Modi before but didn't succeed. I wish Assam could face upto > Delhi the same way. > > > Dilip Deka > > > > > > From: mc mahant <mikemah...@hotmail.com> > > > > > Off with his head > > > > > Tavleen Singh > > > > > > Posted: Mar 20, 2011 > > > > > Last week, when it was announced that there were > > > plans afoot to set income tax sleuths on to those who invest in > Gujarat, > > > my first reaction was disbelief. Surely not, I thought, not when > > > foreign investors are fleeing India in droves, not when the Reserve > Bank > > > has itself pointed out ominously that foreign direct investment in > > > India has dropped by nearly 40 per cent in recent months. Why would a > > > prime minister whose expertise lies in the field of economics allow > such > > > insanity to go ahead? > > > > > > The reasons could most certainly not be economic, so I started > searching > > > for political reasons and realisation quickly dawned. Narendra Modi has > > > long been seen by political pundits in Delhi, especially those of > > > Congress persuasion, as the only man who could in 2014 challenge their > > > glamorous young prince and so he must be destroyed. Besides he has been > > > flying too high for his own good, has he not? Always holding those > > > conventions to boast about ‘vibrant’ Gujarat and always making jokes > > > about the Congress Party that the silly old ‘aam aadmi’ laughs his head > > > off at without noticing that they are laughing on the same side as a > > > merchant of death, a ‘maut ka saudagar’. Remember when the financial > > > scandals started falling out of the central government’s cupboard at so > > > alarming a rate and how he made that speech in which he said ‘munni > > > badnaam hui’. How dare he? Who did he mean? The Congress Party or she > > > who leads it? So off with his head. > > > > > Not easily done politically because somehow he has managed, wretched > > > man, to keep winning elections (with even Muslims voting for him), so > > > someone in Delhi came up with the cunning plan to destroy him > > > economically. Ordering income tax raids on political opponents is an > old > > > Congress practice that was used recklessly and with powerful effect by > > > first Mrs Gandhi during the Emergency and then again by V P Singh when > he was > > > Rajiv’s finance minister. He went too far, though, because he started > to > > > raid Rajiv’s friends and so he had to go. But to get back to Gujarat. > > > Under that ‘maut ka saudagar’, its economy has climbed to dizzying > > > heights. Even a casual visitor can see the speed at which roads get > > > built, the availability of electricity in remote villages, the check > > > dams that help irrigate areas that have never seen irrigation, the > > > primary health centres that actually work. Investors see much more. > They > > > see an administration that is less corrupt than most and a chief > > > minister who fulfills his promises. If he tells you that he will make > > > land available to you in a week, he ensures that this happens, and if > he > > > promises a single window to clear your projects, he delivers. > > > These are not things that Congress chief ministers can do because their > > > primary concern is to ensure that the ‘high command’ is kept happy by > > > regular and large infusions into the coffers of the party. They can get > > > away with no governance at all as long as they do this. Then they have > > > to ensure that they pay regular obeisance to the party’s ruling Dynasty > > > and by the time all this is over, there is little time for doing > > > anything else. So the best governed states in India are those that are > > > not run by Congress chief ministers and the only way to keep them in > > > check is to curb them in every possible way. If it is income tax raids > > > in Gujarat, it is unwieldy schemes like the NREGA in Bihar. You see > when > > > the central government puts in place a scheme like this then the state > > > government loses some of its own control over funds and welfare > > > policies. They regularly complain about this but their complaints fall > > > on deaf ears because this is an area in which Sonia Gandhi and her > > > cabinet, the National Advisory Council, are personally interested. > > > The end result is that India, so glittering, so full of allure only six > > > months ago, is now beginning to look like it did before economic > > > liberalisation. It is beginning to look like a dangerous country to > > > invest in and in this bleak scenario there is Gujarat that has so far > > > continued to shine like a beacon where foreign and Indian investors are > > > concerned. This cannot be allowed to happen because it makes the rest > of > > > India look even worse than it already does. Besides, we all know that > > > Narendra Modi is an evil man, a merchant of death, so who cares if all > > > his efforts to make Gujarat rich and prosperous are endangered by > > > famously corrupt income tax inspectors. Of course, there is the small > > > problem that the people of Gujarat may suffer as well but since they > > > have been regularly rejecting Congress at election time who cares about > > > them. Off with their heads as well. > > > > > _______________________________________________ > assam mailing list > assam@assamnet.org > http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org > _______________________________________________ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
