Stating that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is regarded as a great leader globally, Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Sunday asserted that developed nations' outlook towards India has changed significantly after the BJP-led government came to power in 2014.

He was addressing a function here on the occasion of the launch of the PM Vishwakarma scheme, which envisages providing support to traditional artisans and craftspeople.

"Earlier, leaders from India were not given importance during their visits to foreign countries. That changed after Modi came to power in 2014, with every foreign leader not only giving respect to Indian ministers but also expressing willingness to conduct bilateral meetings with them and wanting to engage with India on every front," Rijiju, the Minister of Earth Sciences said.

Greeting Modi on his 73rd birthday, Rijiju said that the prime minister's style of working is different and he has a very high energy level.

"I have worked closely with the prime minister since 2014 and have always been inspired by his energy to work for days with hardly a few hours of sleep. He can, at a stretch, address many meetings in a day which is difficult for a normal person to do," the minister added.

On the PM Vishwakarma scheme launched by Modi, Rijiju said that the cabinet committee on economic affairs has recently allotted Rs 13,000 crore for the scheme, which would be available for traditional artisans and craftspeople for five financial years from 2023-24 to 2027-28.

Rijiju said that artisans can register themselves on the PM Vishwakarma portal using biometrics.

"They will get recognition through PM Vishwakarma certificate and ID card, their skills will be upgraded through basic and advanced training, they will get toolkit incentive of Rs 15,000, collateral-free credit support up to Rs 1 lakh (first tranche) and Rs 2 lakh (second tranche) at a concessional interest rate of 5 per cent, besides incentives for digital transactions and marketing support," he said.

"The importance of traditional artisans in Arunachal Pradesh has reduced with the passage of time and now they can upgrade their skills through the scheme," Rijiju said, while calling upon the youth of the state to take advantage of the scheme for self-employment.

Urging youth not to look down upon any work, he said the dignity of labour must be upheld at any cost.

The minister, who had represented Arunachal Pradesh in Lok Sabha, said the focus of development in the state will be on income generation.

"I am sure that in the coming years, Arunachal Pradesh will be at the top in the country in terms of per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP). If we can tap even 30 per cent of our hydropower resources, we will become a financially self-sufficient state within the next few years," Rijiju added.

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