The Centre on Thursday agreed in principle to link Mumbai with Amritsar through a freight corridor to boost domestic and international freight activity. The Centre’s decision to this effect was conveyed to Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal when he called on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at New Delhi on Thursday. A formal clearance is expected in any time in January.
The proposed freight corridor was mooted up to Ludhiana but Punjab government had been persistently pleading to take it to the Indo-Pak border, media advisor to chief minster Harcharan Bains said.
Bains revealed that Prime Minister has also assured Badal that Punjab’s case for setting up of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Indian Institute of Management (IIM) and Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) would also be considered on a priority basis. The Prime Minister told Badal that he had already directed the ministry of human resource development to expedite the setting up of IIT, IIM and IIIT in Punjab to impart state-of-the-art education in the field of management, engineering and information technology.
He also divulged that Centre had also agreed to set up a manufacturing investment region (MIR) in Punjab to brighten the prospects of trade and commerce in the state. It may be recalled that the state government had already submitted a comprehensive proposal for MIR at Ludhiana for textile/ auto industry, Jalandhar for leather/sports goods, Batala for foundry, Mandi Gobindgarh for iron works and Goraya for agricultural implements.
Badal informed Manmohan Singh that the setting up of MIR in the state would be instrumental to revive the sick industry and arrest the trend of flight of industry from Punjab to the neighboring states of Himachal Pradesh, J&K and Uttrakhand which had been enormously benefited by the Centre due to its special industrial package of liberal concessions and incentives.
The Prime Minister also conceded the state government’s proposal to upgrade the Amritsar Medical College to provide best health care facilities to the people of Punjab and adjoining states of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.