Bharat Mata ki Jai! Popular Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sharma ji, my colleagues in the Union Cabinet Sarbananda Sonowal ji, Hardeep Singh Puri ji, Ministers of Assam Government, MPs and MLAs and my brothers and sisters who have come here in large numbers!
मोइ होमूह, ऑहोमबासीक आगोतीयाकोइ, हारोदीया दुर्गा पूजार, उलोग आरु हुभेच्छा जोनाइशु। महापुरुष श्रीमोंतो हंकरदेबोर, जन्मोत्सव, उपोलेख्यो, गुरुजनार प्रोति, श्रद्धा निबेदोन करिइशु।
Friends,
I have been in the North East for the last two days. Whenever I come to the North East, I receive unprecedented love and blessings. Especially the love and affection I get in this region of Assam is amazing. I express my heartfelt gratitude to all of you people.
Friends,
Today is a very important day for the glorious journey of developed Assam and developed India. Today, Assam has got projects worth about Rs 18 thousand crores. I was in Darang a short while ago. There I have had the opportunity to lay the foundation for projects related to connectivity and health. Now the foundation stone and inauguration of projects related to energy security have been done here. These efforts will further strengthen the path of developed Assam.
Friends,
Assam is a land that enhances India's energy potential. The petroleum products produced here accelerate the development of the country. The BJP NDA government is working to take this power of Assam to new heights. Before coming to this stage, I had gone to another program nearby, where a modern plant producing bio-ethanol from bamboo was inaugurated. This is a matter of great pride for Assam. Along with the inauguration of the ethanol plant, the foundation stone of the poly-propylene plant has also been laid here today. These plants will give a boost to industries in Assam. Will accelerate the development of Assam. They will create new opportunities for farmers, youth, and everyone. I congratulate all of you for so many projects.
Friends,
Today India is the fastest developing country in the world. As India is developing, our needs for electricity, gas and fuel are also increasing. We have been dependent on foreign countries for these things. We import huge quantities of crude oil and gas from foreign countries and in return India has to pay crores of rupees to other countries every year. Our money creates jobs abroad, increases the income of people there. This situation needed to be changed. That is why India has embarked on the path of becoming self-reliant for its energy needs.
Friends,
On the one hand, we are discovering new reserves of crude oil and gas in the country, while on the other hand, we are also increasing our green energy capabilities. You all must have heard that this time I have announced Samudra Manthan from the Red Fort. Experts say that there may be huge reserves of oil and gas in our seas too. To make these resources useful for the country and to explore them, we are going to launch the National Deep Water Exploration Mission.
Friends,
In terms of green energy, India is also taking rapid steps in the production of green energy. A decade ago, India was far behind in terms of solar power. But today India has come among the top five countries in the world in terms of solar power.
Friends,
In these changing times, India needs more fuels as an alternative to oil and gas. One such alternative is ethanol. Today, a plant to make ethanol from bamboo has been inaugurated here. This will be of great benefit to the farmers of Assam, my tribal brothers and sisters and their families.
Friends,
Arrangements are also being made for the bamboo required to run the bio-ethanol plant. The government will provide assistance to the farmers here to cultivate bamboo and will also purchase bamboo. Small units related to bamboo chipping will be set up here. Every year approximately Rs 200 crore will be spent in this sector. Thousands of people here will benefit from this one plant.
Friends,
Today we are going to make ethanol from bamboo. But you should not forget those days when the Congress government used to put people in jail for cutting bamboo; there was a ban on cutting the bamboo which is a part of the daily life of our tribals. Our government has lifted the ban on bamboo cutting and today this decision is greatly benefiting the people of the North East.
Friends,
All of you use a lot of things made of plastic in your daily life. We need a lot of things like plastic buckets, mugs, balls, chairs, tables, packaging material, etc. on a daily basis. You know, the material needed to make all this is poly-propylene. It is difficult to imagine today's life without poly-propylene. Carpets, ropes, bags, fibers, masks, medical kits, textiles and so many other things are made from this. It is used in vehicles, in making medical and agricultural equipment. Today, Assam will get the gift of this modern poly-propylene plant, you will get it. The foundation of Make in Assam, Make in India is going to be strengthened by this plant. Other manufacturing industries will also get a boost here.
Friends,
Just as Assam is known for Gomosha, Eri and Muga Silk, similarly textiles made from poly-propylene are also going to be added to the identity of Assam.
Friends,
Today our country is showing the pinnacle of hard work for the Self-reliant India campaign. Assam is one of the major centers of this campaign. I have great faith in the potential of Assam, that is why we have chosen Assam for a very big mission and this mission is the Semiconductor Mission. The reason for my faith in Assam is equally big. Assam tea was not that popular during the times of slavery, but within no time, the soil of Assam and the people of Assam made Assam tea a global brand. Now a new era has come, India needs two things to become self-reliant, one is energy and the other is semiconductor and Assam is playing a very big role in this.
Friends,
Today, the soul of every electronic thing, from bank cards to mobile phones, cars, airplanes and space missions, is contained in a small electronic chip. If we have to manufacture all these things in India, then the chips should be ours. That is why India has started the Semiconductor Mission and has made Assam a major base for it. The construction of a semiconductor factory is progressing rapidly in Morigaon. 27 thousand crore rupees are being spent on this, this is a matter of great pride for Assam.
Friends,
Congress has ruled the country for a long time. Here in Assam too, Congress has run the government for many decades. But as long as Congress governments were in power, the pace of development remained slow and the heritage also remained in crisis. BJP's double engine government is strengthening the old identity of Assam and is also connecting Assam with modern identity. Congress gave separation, violence and disputes to Assam and North East. BJP is making Assam a state rich in development and heritage. It is our government which gave the status of classical language to the Assamese language. I am happy that the BJP government of Assam is also rapidly implementing the new National Education Policy. Education in local languages is being encouraged here.
Friends,
Congress never gave due respect to the great sons of North East and Assam. There were brave warriors like Veer Lasit Borphukan on this land, but Congress never gave him the respect he deserved. Our government honoured the legacy of Lasit Borphukan. We celebrated his 400th birth anniversary at the national level. We published his biography in 23 languages. Here in Jorhat, I also had the opportunity to unveil his huge statue. What the Congress ignored, we are taking that to the forefront.
Friends,
The historic Rangghar of Shivsagar was lying neglected here, and our government renovated it. Our government is working to make Batadrava, the birthplace of Srimanta Shankardev, a world-class tourist center. Just like Kashi Vishwanath Dham complex has been built in Varanasi, Mahakal Mahalok has been built in Ujjain, similarly our government is also building Maa Kamakhya Corridor in Assam.
Friends,
There are many such symbols, many such places related to the culture and history of Assam, which the BJP government is preserving for the new generation. This is not only benefiting Assam's heritage, but the scope of tourism is also increasing in Assam. The more tourism increases in Assam, the more employment our youth will get.
Friends,
Amidst these development efforts, a challenge is becoming more severe for Assam. This challenge is infiltration. When the Congress government was in power here, it gave land to the infiltrators and gave protection to illegal occupation. In its greed for vote bank, Congress disturbed the demographic balance in Assam. Now the BJP government is facing this challenge along with the people of Assam. We are liberating your lands from infiltrators. Our government is giving land leases to those tribal families who do not have land and are in need. I would also like to praise the Assam government for Mission Basundhara. Under this, land leases have been given to lakhs of families. The land rights of the Ahom, Koch Rajbongshi and Gorkha communities have been recognised in certain tribal areas and they have been included in the list of protected classes. BJP is fully committed to correcting the historical injustice done to the tribal society.
Friends,
The BJP government has only one mantra for development, that mantra is- नागरिक देवो भव:, नागरिक देवो भव:। That is, the citizens of the country should not face any inconvenience and they should not have to wander here and there for small needs. For a long time during the rule of Congress, the poor were made to suffer and were rejected. Because the work of Congress was done by appeasing a class. They used to get power. But BJP emphasizes on satisfaction, not appeasement. We are working with the intention that no poor person, no area should be left behind. Today in Assam, the work of constructing concrete houses for the poor is also progressing rapidly, so far more than 20 lakh concrete houses have been provided to the poor in Assam. The work of providing tap water to every house is also progressing at a fast pace in Assam.
Friends,
My brothers and sisters working in the tea gardens here are also benefiting from the BJP government's poor welfare schemes. The welfare of tea workers is our priority. The government is providing help to women and children working in tea gardens. We have great emphasis on women's health and children's education. Here the government is also running schemes to reduce maternal mortality and infant mortality rates. During the Congress regime, the tea garden workers were left at the mercy of the management of the tea companies. But the BJP government is taking care of their houses, electricity connection in their houses, water in their houses, and their health. Crores of rupees are being spent on these schemes.
Friends,
A new phase of Assam's development has begun. Assam will become a major center of trade and tourism. Together we will build a developed Assam, a developed India. Once again, I wish all of you the best for the development projects. Say with me, Bharat Mata ki Jai! Raise your hands and say with all your strength, Bharat Mata ki Jai! Bharat Mata ki Jai! Bharat Mata ki Jai! Thank you very much!
