Guwahati, Mar 14 (IANS): Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said that the entire northeast, a region which earlier lacked development, has drawn immense attention and bagged projects in just 10 years under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rule.

Speaking at a Viksit Bhart campus dialogue at IIT Guwahati, the finance minister underlined how in almost every aspect, this region of the county was greatly benefitted due to Prime Minister Modi's governance model.

She said, "In last 10 years, PM Modi has visited the northeast 65 times which means in every two months, the Prime Minister was here. The Union Ministers visited the northeast at least 850 times during this period."

The Union Finance minister drew a sharp contrast between the development works done under PM Modi's regime and earlier governments.

Nirmala Sitharaman said, "Before 2014, 10,000 kilometres national highway was constructed in the northeast since independence, whereas in the last 10 years, more than 6,000 kilometres national highways was built. Until 2014, the northeast used to have only seven airports. Currently the northeast has 17 airports with four having international flight services."

She also mentioned that Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim were connected by air services for the first time with the rest of the country under PM Modi's government.

"The northeast has seen many firsts during the last 10 years and it has also given the hope that the region will play a crucial role in making India a developed nation in 2047," she said.