Namsai: BJP president J P Nadda on Saturday attacked the Congress, alleging that the governments led by the grand old party did not want to construct roads in the border areas of the country due to its weak foreign policy.
The Congress during its long rule did not want to upset the neighbouring countries by creating infrastructure in the border areas, Nadda claimed while addressing a public rally of the BJP here in Arunachal Pradesh.
“The best defence for the Congress party is not to develop border areas as it may create more trouble for the government,” he said.
The Narendra Modi government “handled the Ladakh standoff with strong hands and sent a clear signal to China,” he said
The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong Lake area. The ties between the two countries nosedived significantly following the fierce clash in the Galwan Valley in June of that year that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades.
The entire world now accepts Modi as a powerful leader because of his “strong foreign policy”, Nadda said at the rally.
It was organised on the occasion of nine years of completion of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre and seven years of the Pema Khandu government in the state.
Nadda said the prime minister executed the surgical strike on Pakistan sending a strong message to the country against cross-border terrorism.
The BJP president, who is on his maiden visit to the northeastern state, said that Arunachal Pradesh always inspired him as the people of the state is patriotic and act as sentinels of the border.
“The people exhibit their patriotism by greeting all the people with Jai Hind’ for which I salute them,” Nadda added.
Nadda said though he is happy to see the developmental initiatives in Arunachal Pradesh, he is equally sad because the strategic state was being neglected by the Congress for decades.
“The northeast gained importance after Atal Bihari Vajpayee became the prime minister of the country. The work initiated by Vajpayee for the region was executed by Prime Minister Modi who proved that the region is not far from New Delhi,” the BJP president said.
Modi in the last nine years visited northeast more than 50 times and Arunachal Pradesh more than five times, which was never witnessed by any other prime minister of the country, he said.
Nadda added that from 1947 to 2013, only 30,000 kilometres of roads were constructed in Arunachal Pradesh but the Modi government built more than 20,000 kilometres of road in the state.
“In northeast, work on seven new airports is going on and more than 54,000 km of road were constructed in the region in the past nine years,” he said.
Lashing out at the Congress for alleging price rises in the country, Nadda clarified that India is the fastest growing economy in the world with its GDP standing at 8.7 per cent, much higher than various developed countries.
“Inflation in India stands at less than 4.24 per cent and price rise increased by a slight margin of 2.91 per cent in comparison to other developed countries,” he said adding, the poverty index in the country reduced to less than 10 per cent from 22 per cent in 2014.
Dear Reader,
Every day, our team at EastMojo travels through rain, rough roads, and remote hills to bring you stories that matter – stories from your town, your people, your Northeast.
We do this because we believe in truthful, independent journalism. No big corporate backing, no government pressure – just honest reporting by local journalists who live and breathe the same air you do.
But to keep doing this work, we need you. Your small contribution helps us pay our reporters fairly, reach places others ignore, and keep asking the tough questions.
If you believe the Northeast deserves its own fearless voice, stand with us.
Support independent journalism. Be a Member.
Thank you,
Karma Paljor
Editor-in-Chief, eastmojo.com
“Earlier the world use to club India and Pakistan together, but today India has gained popularity, leaving aside Pakistan alone,” he added.
Referring to the Made in India’ mission of the Modi government, Nadda said, “As many as 95 per cent of defence procurement in the country are made from Indian companies now, which was earlier procured from foreign countries.”
Also Read | Arunachal police launches mobile app, portal for digital policing