The Centre on Tuesday announced a new development initiative for the Northeast in the 2022-23 Union budget with an initial allocation of Rs 1,500 crore of which Mizoram has bagged the lion’s share of around Rs 600 crore.

The new scheme, Prime Minister’s Development Initiative for NorthEast (PM-DevINE), announced by Union minister for finance and corporate affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman, will not be a “substitute” for existing central or state schemes but “priority” will be accorded to projects proposed by the states.

To be implemented through the North Eastern Council (NEC), the nodal agency under the ministry of the Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) for the economic and social development of the region.

The scheme will fund infrastructure “in the spirit of PM GatiShakti” and social development projects based on needs of the Northeast, enabling livelihood activities for youth and women and bridging the gaps in various sectors. PM GatiShakti is a 100 lakh crore “holistic” infrastructure development project.

The initial list of seven projects includes multi-state dedicated cancer management service (Rs 129cr), livelihood improvement (Rs 67cr) and promotion of organic agriculture (Rs 45cr). Projects worth Rs 537 crore are yet to be identified.

State-specific projects included the Rs 500 crore Aizawl bypass and bamboo link road (Rs 100 crore) in Mizoram which has received the highest allocation among the eight states followed by Sikkim which has received gap funding for two ropeway projects amounting to Rs 122 crore.

Mizoram officials said the Aizawl bypass will help decongest traffic in the capital city while the bamboo link road will help in the transportation of bamboo and bamboo products from remote areas, a project which was pushed by Mizoram chief minister Zoramthanga.

Industry captains said the new scheme was welcome but the Centre should ensure time-bound implementation.

R.S. Joshi, former chairman of Federation of Industry and Commerce of North Eastern Region (FINER), the leading and oldest apex business association of the region with over 400 members, said the initial allocation is not much for eight states but it is still welcome, especially the move to route it through the NEC.

“We hope the Centre will closely monitor the implementation of the projects by the NEC. Effective and timely delivery is required. Overall the budget is reasonable given the pandemic situation,” Joshi said.

Confederation of Indian Industry’s Northeast chairman Abhijit Barooah too hailed the new initiative and hoped the NEC will show result.

“Only timely and effective implementation by the NEC could see enhancement in the budgetary allocation. The allocation for the bamboo link road shows Mizoram CM’s perseverance has paid off. He (CM) used to raise this issue at almost every business/development meetings. Link road will help provide connectivity to bamboo growers in remote inaccessible area. It will speed up development in the interiors,” he said.

An NEC official said the scheme reflected the “concerted” effort of the Centre for the speedy development of the Northeast so that it becomes the engine of India’s growth.

“This is an additional scheme. We will have to follow it to its logical end with tangible outcome. It will be monitored by the PMO,” the official said.