We should start our oil and natural gas: Rio

September 15, 2023 83 Views No Comment

Our Correspondent
Kohima | September 15

Nagaland’s Chief Minister Neiphu Rio today viewed that it is high time that “We start our oil and natural gas. We should exploit our minerals.”

“If we do that we will get a lot of revenue, royalty for our own state, then we can do anything we want to do with our own money,” Rio said while responding to starred question, at the second session of 14 NLA in Kohima, on the position of the state government on Bipartite and Tripartite MoU with the Government of India and the Government of Assam for exploration of Crude oil from Assam- Nagaland Border areas.

Stating that the government has no intention to confront with “our own people,” he sought the collective effort on the related issue to get it resolved early.

“Let us be more practical,” Rio said adding that as we have come together on Naga issue, if Naga issue is resolved, all others, one by one, it can be resolved including border issue.

He said that many state in the country don’t ask anything from the central government as they pay tax and contribute to the central exchequer.

We have rich minerals. We have huge deposit of oil and natural gas. We have plenty. But Assam is trying to supply gas line to Kohima and then Imphal, because we are not exploiting, the Chief Minister said.

Nagaland, we are rich, but we remain poor because we don’t want to exploit anything of our resources, Rio added.