India's progress incomplete without development of NE region: Naidu
Source: The Sangai Express / PIB

Imphal, October 05 2021: Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu who arrived here today has urged all Governments of North Eastern States to utilise the fund given by the Centre judiciously and use it for the development of the region and the people.

The Vice President who was received at the Imphal airport by Governor La Ganesan, Chief Minister N Biren and other top ranking Government officials attended a National seminar on Bio-economy of North Eastern Region of India organised by the Institute of Bioresources and Sustainable Development.

Addressing the gathering at IBSD, the Vice President noted the contribution of scientific community in Nation building and added that "the future progress of our country rests in the hands of our able scientists" .

He also urged the researchers and scientists to work shoulder to shoulder along with other important groups to make "India a Vishwaguru" once again.

Naidu opined that rational thinking and scientific temper are the cornerstones of a progressive Nation.

India's progress incomplete without development of NE region: Naidu

"You are endowed with the requisite education, training, focus and discipline to apply pragmatic scientific knowledge for fast-tracking the country's all-round development," he said to the scientists present.

Stressing that India's development is incomplete without development of the North Eastern Region, the Vice President said that the Central Government has been according priority to the North East by adopting a multi dimensional approach for the all round development of the region.

He urged all States to work along with the Centre in the true spirit of Team India for growth and prosperity.

Reiterating that peace is a prerequisite to progress, he said that there cannot be any compromise on the unity and integrity of the Nation.

Emphasising the need for transparency and corruption free governance, Naidu said that funds meant for the poor should reach them without any diversion or dilution.

Stressing the importance of using mother tongue in administration, he called for providing information on development schemes to villagers in local language.

The Vice President also inaugurated the Phyto-pharmaceutical Lab Facility at IBSD.

Observing that the North-Eastern region is a biodiversity hotspot with its rich variety of ecosystems, Naidu praised IBSD for managing the bioresources of the region for sustainable development using modern biotechnological tools.

He also expressed happiness that ISBD, an institution under the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) is promoting the Phyto-pharmaceutical Mission of North Eastern Region.

The Mission that aims to promote the documentation, scientific validation and evaluation of traditional healthcare practices is an important step and assumes special significance in the context of the vast plant resources and diverse traditional healthcare practices of the North East.

"I am glad to know that ISBD is also focusing on the promotion of start-ups based on the development of herbal medicinal products such as AYUSH drugs, Phyto-pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals, among others.

This is indeed the need of the hour," he said.

Noting that the Phyto-pharmaceutical Mission will focus mainly on therapeutic areas like antiviral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and insect repellents, the Vice President opined that this would help in popularizing traditional healthcare practices and would also aid in the development of effective alternative herbal medicines to combat diseases like Covid-19."I am certain that the move to target high quality volatile oil producing plants under this programme will attract more farmers to commercial cultivation of aromatic plants of this region," he added.

The Vice President also visited the recently established Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) facility at the Institute.

Praising IBSD's role in combating the challenged of the Covid-19 pandemic, Naidu called the INSACOG network as an important marker in this direction.

The Vice President also congratulated Prof Pulok Kumar Mukherjee, Director of IBSD for his efforts in this regard.

The Vice President advised the Manipur Government to focus on important areas like health, education, agriculture, communication and connectivity to accelerate development in the region.

He also asked the State to encourage and the youth to take up different sports.

The Governor of Manipur, La.

Ganesan, Chief Minister of Manipur, N.Biren Singh, Chief Secretary Dr Rajesh Kumar, Director, IBSD, Prof.Pulok Kumar Mukherjee, scientists and staff of IBSD attended the event.