Published By : Admin |
September 30, 2014 | 15:46 IST
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Mr. President, members of the media,
First, I want to thank President Obama for his invitation and his warm and generous hospitality.
I am pleased to visit USA and meet President Obama at the start of my tenure.
I am happy that we are meeting here just a few days after the Indian and the U.S. missions reached Mars around the same time. So, after the India-U.S. summit on Mars, we are meeting here on earth. This happy co-incidence captures the potential of our relationship.
This visit, especially my conversation with President Obama, has reinforced my conviction that India and the United States are natural global partners, based on our shared values, interests and strengths in the digital age. We already have the foundation of a strong partnership. We now have to revive the momentum and ensure that we get the best out of it for our people and for the world.
President and I spoke about many of our common economic priorities. I am confident that India will see rapid economic growth and transformation. We are focusing in India on not just on policies, but also on processes, to make it easy and productive to do business in India. I believe that India-U.S. economic partnership will also grow rapidly in the coming years.
I also sought President Obama`s support for continued openness and ease of access for Indian services companies in the U.S. market.
We are serious about resolution of issues on both sides to enable civil nuclear energy cooperation to take off. It is important for India`s energy security.
We had a candid discussion on Bali Ministerial of the WTO. India supports trade facilitation. However, I also expect that we are able to find a solution that takes care of our concern on food security. I believe that it should be possible to do that soon.
We have agreed to consult and cooperate closely on climate change issues, an area of strong priority for both of us.
There was great convergence on international developments that matter the most to our two countries, including peace and stability in Asia Pacific region. The United States is intrinsic to our Look East and Link West policies.
We discussed existing terrorism challenges, including in South Asia, and the new threats of terrorism in West Asia and beyond. We agreed to intensify our counter-terrorism and intelligence cooperation.
The Afghan people have shown the will to prevail over violence and extremism. We discussed our two countries` continued commitment to assist Afghanistan and our own coordination in this area.
We have shared concern on the Ebola crisis in Africa, for which India has already made financial commitments of 12 million U.S. dollars.
Given our broad range of shared interests, we will also continue to deepen our security dialogue and defence relations. I want to especially welcome the U.S. defence companies to participate in developing the Indian defence industry.
During the last four days in the U.S., I have seen extraordinary interest and excitement about India and India-U.S. partnership among the people of our two countries.
We will draw strength and inspiration from it as we start a more purposeful course in our ongoing journey. I look forward to receiving President Obama and his family in India at a convenient time.
I once again thank President Obama, the people of the United States and, especially, the Indian American community for their warm welcome and hospitality.
Bodoland is scripting a new chapter of peace and prosperity: PM Modi in Assam
March 13, 2026
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Kokrajhar is closely associated with the glorious Bodo culture: PM
These development projects are aimed at boosting the region’s growth: PM
Today Bodoland has set out on the path of peace and development; Assam is writing a new chapter of peace and prosperity: PM
Our Government has ensured national recognition for the faith and traditions of the Bodo community. Their traditional faith, Bathou, has been accorded great respect: PM
We must continue to accelerate the pace of Assam's development, with the blessings of the people of Assam the resolve for a ‘Viksit Assam’ will surely be fulfilled: PM
Khulumbye Kokrajhar!
Friends,
Due to bad weather, I am unable to come to Kokrajhar. I apologize to all of you. It has been possible to communicate with you from here in Guwahati; I had set out from Delhi to come to you, but I had to land in Guwahati itself, and now from Guwahati, I am having your darshan and also talking to you. Associated with this program, the Chief Minister of Assam, brother Himanta Biswa Sarma ji, my colleague in the Union Cabinet Sarbananda Sonowal ji, the Chief Executive Member of the Bodoland Territorial Council Hagrama Mohilary ji, the Governor of Assam present with us Shri Lakshman Prasad Acharya ji, Ministers of the Assam Government, MPs and MLAs, all representatives of the B.T.C., all senior members of society, and my dear brothers and sisters!
First of all, I respectfully bow to Bodofa Upendranath Brahma ji, Roopnath Brahma ji, and the great personalities of this land. I am seeing that wherever my sight reaches, only people and more people are visible, and mothers and sisters have also come in such large numbers to give their blessings. You have reached there in such a massive number. This love of yours is like a debt upon me. And it has always been my effort to repay this debt by serving you, by developing this region.
Friends,
Just a few weeks ago I was in Guwahati, where I had the opportunity to become a part of the rich Bodo culture in the grand celebration of Bagurumba Dahou. It gives me great pride to see that the Bodo society has kept its language, its culture, and its traditions so well-preserved and nurtured. Whether it is the spiritual tradition of Bathou or the festival of Baisagu, all these further strengthen the cultural power of India.
Friends,
The BJP-NDA double-engine government is also working continuously for both the preservation of Assam's heritage and the rapid development of Assam. Today, in this program itself, the foundation stone laying and inauguration of projects worth more than four and a half thousand crore rupees have taken place for the development of this region. Out of this, an amount of more than 1100 crore rupees is going to be spent on the roads of Bodoland. From the third phase of this campaign, Assam Mala, the road connectivity of Assam will become even more empowered.
Friends,
A short while ago, I also had the opportunity to flag off the Kamakhya-Cherlapally Amrit Bharat Express and the Guwahati-New Jalpaiguri Express. From all these projects, you will not only get facilities, but trade and tourism will also get a boost. Through this, the produce of farmers will be able to reach big markets easily. I congratulate all of you very much for these development projects.
Friends,
This entire region, including Kokrajhar, had suffered a lot and lost a lot in the past decades. We have seen those difficult times when only the echoes of bombs and guns were heard in these hills. But today this picture is changing. Today these hills are echoing with the beat of the 'Kham' and the sweet tunes of the 'Sifung'. Today Bodoland has set out on the path of peace and development. Today Assam is writing a new chapter of peace and development.
Friends,
Today, the groundbreaking ceremony of 6 important road projects of the B.T.R. region has taken place here; also, major steps have been taken to strengthen the rail connectivity of this region. The railway workshop to be built here is going to make this region a big center of logistics. Work is also going on here on the rail line connecting Bhutan; many stations are also being made modern. Now trains like Vande Bharat and Rajdhani Express stop in Kokrajhar. This is proof of the better connectivity of Bodoland. With such projects, Kokrajhar is going to become a big center of trade.
Friends,
I congratulate Hagrama Mohilary ji's team, and Hemanta ji's entire team very much for these works of development.
Friends,
For decades, this region of Bodoland has been a witness to the betrayal of the Congress. The Congress kept many generations of Bodoland entangled in false dreams. The Congress governments sitting in Delhi made paper agreements only for show.
Friends,
When you ousted the Congress from both the country and Assam and gave an opportunity to the BJP-NDA, we started honest efforts. Where Congress used to create rifts among different communities for its selfish politics, the BJP worked for permanent peace. With this thinking, the Bodo Peace Accord was made. In this agreement, for the first time, all major organizations and groups were brought together.
Friends,
There is another truth about Congress; Congress is a shop of false promises. And with one false promise, it gives four super-lies as gifts. Because, the Congress does not even have the intention to fulfill those promises. On the other hand, the model of BJP-NDA is before you. Whatever our double-engine government said, it made an honest effort to make it true, and this is not a matter of today; in 2003, when the NDA government was in Delhi under the leadership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji, even then we left no stone unturned in working with truth and honesty. Under that, the BTC was formed in the Sixth Schedule; this gave strength to the development of Bodoland. Bodoland University was built here, Central Institute of Technology was built, Engineering College was built, many such projects came here.
Friends,
Under the 2020 agreement, whatever promises we made are being fulfilled one after another, at a fast pace, through continuous hard work. The Bodo language has been given the status of an Associate Official Language. A special development package of 1500 crore rupees was given for Bodoland. Today a medical college is functional in Kokrajhar and a medical college is being built in Tamulpur. New bridges are being built here. Today, about 10 thousand youths of Assam who gave up weapons are being taken forward by joining the mainstream. All those mothers are blessing us whose sons have returned home today. They are living life with their families in prosperity.
Friends,
Our government has also ensured that the faith and traditions of the Bodo society get respect at the national level. The traditional faith of the Bodo society, Bathou, has also been given great respect. And special assistance is also being given for the development of places of faith.
Friends,
There is another big sin of the Congress, which has become a very big threat to the security of the country and Assam. Which has put the security of Roti, Beti, and Maati (bread, daughter, and land), all three, in danger. The hand of the Congress has always been with the infiltrators and is even today. For decades, the Congress did not even give legal documents of land to the original inhabitants here. Congress handed over a lot of land belonging to the tribals to the infiltrators. In districts like Dhubri and Goalpara, the situation was very terrible. Due to this, the balance of population in Bodoland was getting disturbed; a crisis began to come upon the society. I am satisfied that under the leadership of Hemanta ji, a very big campaign to free the land from the possession of infiltrators is going on in Assam. Here the BJP-NDA government has also given legal documents of land to the original inhabitants of Assam. I want to express my gratitude from the heart to the tribal community also for supporting this campaign wholeheartedly. Today I have come to urge you to give the strictest punishment to the Congress in the coming elections; give a clear message that now there is no place for infiltrators in the country. The message emanating from Assam will become the voice of the entire country.
Friends,
We have to continuously speed up the pace of Assam's development and I know that with the blessings of the people of Assam, the resolution of a developed Assam will surely be realized. With this faith, I again give many, many best wishes to all of you for the development projects.
