Previous prime ministers were so busy that they hardly had time to visit Northeast: PM Modi

Narendra Modi on Thursday said the country’s previous prime ministers were too busy to visit northeastern India. “Previous prime ministers were so busy that they hardly had time to visit northeast India. However, I am someone who cannot live without visiting northeast India,” Modi said at a rally in Itanagar, where he inaugurated the new secretariat building and Dorjee Khandu State Convention Centre.

Modi has visited Arunachal Pradesh twice after becoming prime minister. China has often reacted when Indian prime ministers and presidents have visited the state for it considers Arunachal a part of its territory.

“Arunachal Pradesh is one such place in Northeast India where people understand and talk in Hindi,” Modi said. Referring to the greeting “Jai Hind”, he said, “People in Arunachal Pradesh in one day time utter ‘Jai Hindi’ so many times that it matches the one week of the whole country. People here have made it a part of their life style to greet each other with ‘Jai Hind’. This is the level of patriotism here.”

The prime minister pointed out that in several places in northeastern India he comes across youth carrying banners saying “we want to learn Hindi”.