Andaman: ‘Vikas of Andaman and Nicobar inspiration for youth,’ says Modi at Port Blair new terminal opening | India News

maha mantra

of development and heritage going hand in hand,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday while inaugurating the new Rs 710-crore integrated terminal building at Port Blair’s Veer Savarkar International Airport. The 40,800 square meter terminal has the capacity to handle about 50 lakh passengers annually and the airport can now park 10 planes a a time thanks to getting four more aircraft aprons.
“More flights and tourists will bring more jobs to the area. Port Blair’s new terminal building will increase ease of travel, ease of doing business and connectivity. The scope of development was limited to big cities for a long time in India. Adivasi and island regions of the country were devoid of development for a long time. In the last 9 years, the present government has not only rectified the mistakes of the governments of the past with utmost sensitivity but also come up with a new model of development of inclusion — ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas,” the PM said while inaugurating the terminal via video conferencing.
He said Andaman has seen a lot of development in the last nine years. In nine years of the previous government, Andaman and Nicobar received a budget of Rs 23,000 crore, whereas in the last nine years of the present government, a budget of about Rs 48,000 crores was allocated for Andaman and Nicobar, he said.
“Similarly, during the nine years of the previous government 28,000 households were connected with piped water, this number in the last 9 years is 50,000. Today everyone in Andaman and Nicobar has a bank account and the facility of one nation one ration card. The current government is also responsible for the medical college in Port Blair whereas, earlier, there was no medical college in the Union territory. Earlier, internet was solely dependent on satellites, now the present government took the initiative of laying the undersea optical fiber of hundreds of kilometres,” Modi said.
Thanks to this development, tourist footfall in the archipelago has doubled as compared to 2014. Adventure tourism is also thriving and the numbers will rise manifold in the coming years. “Andaman is becoming a living and breathing example of the maha-mantra of development and heritage going hand in hand.”
The PM noted that even though the Tiranga was hoisted in Andaman way before it was hoisted in the Red Fort, one could only find signs of slavery on the island. He expressed gratitude for getting the opportunity to hoist the national flag at the exact same spot where Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose once hoisted the Tiranga. He highlighted that it was the present government that renamed Ross Island as Netaji Subhas Island, Havelock Island as Swaraj Island and Neil Island as Shaheed Island. He also touched upon renaming the 21 islands after the Param Vir Chakra awardees. “Development of Andaman and Nicobar Islands has become a source of inspiration for the youth of the country,” he added.
“India would have scaled new heights in the last 75 years of Independence as there is no doubt about the capabilities of the Indians. However corruption and dynastic politics always did injustice to the strengths of the common citizens,” he said while talking about the “opportunistic politics of certain parties” and criticising “politics of casteism and corruption.”
He also criticised acceptance of people under the cloud of corruption and who, in some cases, are on bail and even convicted. He attacked the mentality of holding the Constitution hostage. He pointed out that such forces are focused on selfish family gains rather than on the development of common citizens. Modi underlined the strength of the youth of India in the fields of defence and startup and lamented how no justice was done for this strength of the youth.