Shillong, June 3: Union Home Minister and Chairman of the North Eastern Council (NEC), Amit Shah, is set to chair the 73rd Plenary Session of the North Eastern Council in Shillong on June 4, bringing together chief ministers, governors and senior officials from across the eight Northeastern states to deliberate on key regional development priorities.
The annual plenary session will be attended by Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) and NEC Vice-Chairman Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, Minister of State for DoNER Dr. Sukanta Majumdar, governors, chief ministers, members of the Council and senior officials of the Central and State governments.
Ahead of the plenary, a pre-session meeting was held on Wednesday to discuss flagship initiatives including bamboo, agarwood and the Ashtalakshmi Darshan project, along with other development issues concerning the region.
Speaking to reporters, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma said Amit Shah was scheduled to arrive in Shillong on Wednesday evening and expressed confidence that the plenary would result in constructive discussions on the future development of the Northeast.
“All the chief ministers and governors of the Northeast are in Shillong. I am sure we will have a constructive meeting,” Sangma said.
A major focus of the plenary will be presentations by sectoral high-level task forces constituted by the Ministry of DoNER to promote inter-state collaboration. These task forces cover tourism, agriculture and horticulture, investment promotion, sports, infrastructure and connectivity, handloom and handicrafts, economic corridors, and self-reliance in milk, eggs, fish and meat production.
Sangma, who chairs the tourism task force, said the panel would present recommendations aimed at promoting the Northeast as a unified tourism destination rather than individual states competing separately.
“We have been talking about how the Northeast as a whole can represent itself as a destination and a potential tourism market,” he said.
The plenary will also review key initiatives of the Ministry of DoNER, including progress under major schemes and programmes, outcomes of the North East Investment Summit and Bankers’ Conclave, youth-focused initiatives, tourism and logistics projects, and Unique Selling Proposition (USP) projects across the region.
Another major agenda item will be the proposed North East Vision Plan 2047, a long-term roadmap aimed at transforming the region into a hub of economic growth, connectivity, innovation, sustainability and cultural prosperity by the centenary year of India’s Independence.
The NEC, established under the North Eastern Council Act, 1971, serves as the apex regional planning body for the Northeast and plays a key role in fostering coordinated development and cooperative federalism among the states of the region.
Sangma also noted that discussions may include additional issues raised by the Union Home Minister and the DoNER Ministry. He highlighted a series of upcoming high-profile visits to Meghalaya, including Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda on June 5 and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman later this month.
The Chief Minister further confirmed his participation in the NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting to be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 11.
The NEC plenary is expected to chart a coordinated development strategy for the Northeast, with a strong emphasis on regional cooperation, infrastructure development, tourism promotion and economic growth.
