The winter session of the Tripura Legislative Assembly started on Friday with the opening speech of Governor Indrasena Reddy Nallu who hailed the initiatives of the state government for good governance and improvement in farming sectors.

Governor Nallu also marked the year  2023 as a remarkable year for India when it joined the elite league of countries to have landed on the Moon, besides a slew of other developmental initiatives along with strong strides taken by the state government to foster transparency, inclusiveness and sustainable development.

Asserting that the Tripura government is working on all-round development, Governor Indrasena Reddy Nallu said that the state has requested the Centre to arrange an inspection to explore the suitability of land for setting up a new AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Science).

The government has already identified a 200-acre land and requested the Centre to arrange an inspection to ascertain the suitability of the proposed land for construction of a new AIIMS, said Governor and added that a proposal under CSS (Centrally Sponsored Scheme) fo establishing a new medical college attached to the district hospital , Dhalai with 100 MBBS student intake capacity in under preparation.

Highlighting the state’s aims to improve the medical education sector, Nallu said that his government is committed to provide the last mile health service to the remotest location of the state.

Currently, the state has two medical colleges and a dental college operating in Agartala.

The Governor said the government is committed to establishing the northeastern state as a transport and logistics hub for transnational trade and communication.

"The transport department is working in tandem with central ministries on various projects like a multimodal transport hub, interstate and international bus services and railway links," he said.

Nallu also mentioned that a school of logistics, communication and waterways, set up in the state with funding from the ministry of shipping, ports, and waterways, has already taken up various activities.

He said the state is set to construct a unity mall at Hapania that will provide ample space for commercial purposes.

"Under one roof, traders will be able to showcase and sell traditional handicrafts, handloom products, and textiles from various states of the country," he said.

Stating that the government has given top priority to commercial marketing of horticulture products, Nallu said there's plan to establish a centre of excellence on citrus at Taidu in Gumati district under the Indo-Israel Agri-Work plan, with an estimated cost of Rs 9.18 crore.

Nallu said the state government has made significant strides under general administration and good governance, set up new institutions like the Tripura Institution for Transformation, launched the e-cabinet system for transparency and effectiveness, and digitised government offices through the e-office system.

In his speech, the governor pointed out that agriculture and allied categories comprise one of the most dominant sectors in Tripura, contributing to 36 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), in which paddy is the most cultivated crop, covering 54 per cent of the gross cropped area. He added that the government has extended Rs 21.14 crore as farmers’ share of the premium, insuring 12.76 lakh farmers of the state under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana.

Nallu said Tripura has prioritized commercial marketing of horticultural produce, focused to bring more land under cash crop cultivation, started procurement of paddy through Minimum Support Price (MSP), pushed for mother and child nutrition through the Mukhyamantri Matru Pushti Upahar, apart from schemes and projects to ensure social security of disadvantaged groups like the Mukhyamantri Samajik Sahayata Prakalpa, setting up the Tripura Transgender Welfare Board, modernisation of the police and forensic labs, providing compensation to victims of sexual crimes, etc.

On the future targets, the governor said the state aspires to turn itself self-sufficient in animal-derived food production through the Mukhyamantri Unnat Godhan Prakalpa, Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana, integrated animal and fish rearing, sports infrastructure development, improve medical education sector, push last mile health service to the remotest location, ensuring safety and security of people, curb drug menace, promote cultural aspects of the state, etc.

Over the employment opportunities, he said Tripura has worked tirelessly for providing job opportunities to youths, introduced soft skills and vocational guidance programmes, upgraded the socio-economic condition of rural people and said works of the state government were appreciated at the national level with different awards.

On tribal welfare activities, the governor said the state is committed to the overall development of tribals, Scheduled Castes, minorities and backward communities under the Chief Minister’s Tribal Development Mission.

Invoking Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore, Nallu appealed to everyone to be united, build a nation together and work for the nation’s progress.

After the inaugural speech of the Governor, the House was adjourned and when it resumed, two condolence motions were moved on the death of Boxanagar MLA Shamshul Haque in July last year that necessitated a re-poll and the recent death of former minister and Ramnagar MLA Surajit Dutta who passed away at a private hospital in Kolkata on December 28.