STATE TIMES NEWS
NEW DELHI: On the eve of New Year, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Dr Jitendra Singh on Wednesday released 2015 calendar depicting various festivals celebrated in the eight Northeastern States.
The theme of the calendar had been suggested by Dr Jitendra himself soon after he took over the charge of North-East region about a month ago.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Singh said, the uniqueness and glory of North-East lies in the diversity of different cultures and different scenic backdrops presented by eight different States which the Prime Minister Narendra Modi aptly described as “Asht-Lakshmi” during his recent visit to the region. It is, therefore, appropriate that the tourism potential of the region should be highlighted through the medium of its cultural and festive beauty, he added. Keeping this in mind, after conscious consideration the theme of cultural festivals of North-East was selected for the DoNER calendar of 2015, he explained.
Dr Jitendra said, there is lot of exodus of the youth from the North-East region to other parts of the country for reasons of employment and vocation. Therefore, a boost in tourism will also generate employment opportunities in addition to generating revenue, he added.
In the year to come, Dr Singh hoped, North-East will witness new openings and new breakthrough under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has an exclusive vision for the eight States and is always keen that people of the region should be able to receive same opportunities of growth and development as in the rest of the country. The emphasis on cultural and tourism growth is a part of Prime Minister’s grand vision, he added.
Dr Singh said even though the DoNER Ministry’s main concern is development of the region in terms of road connectivity, telecommunication and power generation, the 2015 calendar released on Wednesday also symbolises the unique cultural character of the region which in turn enriches the multi-ethnic and multi-cultural heterogeneity of the Indian nation.
