"It is with a deep sense of satisfaction that I am here at Barpeta today to launch the Backward Regions Grant Fund. This is indeed a momentous occasion for the UPA government as today we redeem an important promise we made to our people in our National Common Minimum Programme, where we committed ourselves to the creation of a Backward States Grant Fund.

While India has progressed rapidly on many fronts, a large segment of our population is still relatively untouched by its benefits. This is particularly true of those living in some regions which have not been able to keep pace with other advanced regions. The backwardness of these regions is a result of many factors but this is so mainly because of their poor infrastructure such as roads, communications, irrigation, schools and healthcare facilities. The fundamental goal of the UPA government is rapid development of the nation on all fronts so that the people of India can lead a secure, prosperous and dignified life. Our focus has been particularly on the aam aadmi and our policies are designed for the benefit of common people, men and women. The removal of this regional imbalance is therefore, an important commitment and goal of the UPA Government. The launch of the Backward Regions Grant Fund is a major initiative of our government in ensuring that regional disparities in development are bridged and backward regions such as Barpeta catch up with the rest of the country.

250 districts are being taken up in the country under the Backward Regions Grant Fund. Rs.3,750 crores has been provided to the Backward Regions Grant Fund for the coming year. Each district will get an additional Rs. 10 to 15 crore annually exclusively for developing infrastructure and filling gaps in development programmes. In Assam, we are taking up eleven districts under the under this new programme. These are Barpeta, Bongaigaon, Cachar, Goalpara, Hailakhandi, Marigaon, Dhemaji, Karbi Anglong, Kokrajhar, North Cachar Hills and North Lakhimpur. I am confident that if these funds are effectively utilized, the people in these districts will be able to participate in and benefit from the rapid growth processes going on in the rest of our country.

The Backward Regions Grant Fund has two unique features which will possibly make it a far more effective programme. Firstly, it will be implemented totally through Panchayati Raj institutions. This is a radical departure from the past. It will be implemented through district plans which are prepared at the grassroots with the active participation at the Gram Panchayat level, the Block Panchayat level and the Zila Panchayat level. Backward regions of India can only develop when their genuine needs are assessed by the people themselves residing in those areas, prioritised and plans prepared by them together with the assistance of professional experts. This is a programme which will reflect your genuine needs and will seek to address them through projects which are designed by the people. In this manner, we seek to realize the vision of Mahatma Gandhi for self reliance through Gram Swaraj and the tireless efforts of Shri Rajiv Gandhi to restore Panchayati Raj to the center of the planning process.

Secondly, the basis for programmes under the Backward Regions Grant Fund is the District Plan. This Plan would be a well conceived plan prepared in a participatory manner. The District Plan would be put together by District Planning Committees constituted in each district which will also integrate plans of rural and urban local bodies. Its funds would be used for promoting development in backward areas by providing infrastructure, promoting sustainable livelihoods and converging development inflows.

While this new programme holds a lot of promise, it would also require a great deal of effort from all concerned. Panchayati Raj functionaries - Sarpanches, Pradhans, Zila Panchayat Presidents - each and every one of them will have to play an active role in its effective planning and implementation. They need to be effectively involved and to be given the capacity to perform this huge task. We have more than 26 lakh elected representatives in the panchayats of our country of which a third are women. They can play a vital role in national development. I am happy that under the Backward Regions Grant Fund, capacity building of Panchayati Raj functionaries is being taken up in a major way.

It is also heartening to see that there is a parallel investment in building local community capacities by promoting the training of "barefoot engineers", "community- level agricultural extension workers" and local level specialists who can be of direct utility in each panchayat. We are still an agricultural nation where a majority of our people depends on agriculture for sustenance. This is even more so in Assam and Barpeta. What we need is a programme whereby people acquire skills which are of use in local activities and which enable them to be less dependent on agriculture for their livelihoods. Over a period of time, as more and more people get trained under this programme, we will see large numbers of skilled workers securing better incomes through new vocations. I request the Chief Minister of Assam and Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar to pay particular attention to this aspect of the programme.

Assam is my state in many respects. As your representative in Parliament, it has been my endeavour to pay special attention to your problems. Over the last three years, we have been making all efforts to improve the economic conditions of the people of Assam. For the first time in many years, a massive thermal power project is underway in Bongaigaon. A huge expansion of coal mines is going on in Ledo in Tinsukia. Special road programmes have been sanctioned for Assam and the North East. Railway lines are being converted to broad gauge and are being doubled wherever necessary. New bridges are being built.

The Chief Minister is providing excellent leadership with a large number of forward looking policies and programmes which will take this state to the top of the national development league. Apart from the Backward Regions Grant Fund, the Central Government is providing support and a large amount of funds for education, healthcare, rural roads, irrigation, rural electrification and drinking water. I believe that the state is on the right path. I am confident that if we are focused in our efforts and promote peace and development, Assam will take its rightful place as a leading state of the country.

Today, we are making a major beginning here today, moving away from Central and State-level planning to district-based planning. It is a radical shift of power away from the Central and State capitals to districts and villages. This task is not going to be simple. But its success is certain because it reposes faith in the ability of every Indian to contribute to our development efforts. Sixty years back, the Mahatma led us to freedom with the very simple weapon of ahimsa. Indeed, his approach was effective because it was based on a leap of faith - a belief that each individual, however humble his standing, craved self-respect and freedom. It is the same spirit that must guide us now. We need to take that leap of faith once more and believe that all of us together, wherever we stand, can move together to change our country. With the Backward Regions Grant Fund we have done precisely that, by entrusting the prime responsibility of local development to those vitally affected by it, the people themselves.

I have no doubt in my mind that the Backward Regions Grant Fund will be a tremendous learning experience for all deeply committed to bringing prosperity to every Indian. We stand to support you, learn from you and hope together with you for a better tomorrow - for Barpeta, for Assam and for India."