Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday opened a three-day visit to the Northeast by laying the foundation stone to construct a multibillion-rupee railway line in Manipur, besides announcing five special railway projects for the state.
"We hope this railway line would help in better connectivity and improving the infrastructure in this remote region," Singh said. "We are committed to working towards overall development in the region."
Singh was speaking at Jiribam after laying the foundation stone for the construction of a 7.28-billion rupee broad gauge railway line connecting the region with the rest of India.
Speaking on the same occasion, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad announced five special railway projects for Manipur.
"The northeast is lagging behind in the infrastructure sector and so our government is according topmost priority to removing such bottlenecks," Lalu Prasad said at Jiribam.
PM for 'new process' in Manipur
Manipur gets five special railway projectsDeclaring that he had come to Manipur to start a "new process", Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Saturday that violence, militancy and terrorism offered no solution to the problems faced by the people.