Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that cooperative federalism in India will ensure that power is not concentrated in the national capital, urging Chief Ministers across the country to join 'team India'.
"West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said a very good thing to me: that the nation will move ahead faster when the Centre and states work together. Sadly the relationship between the Centre and the states has been tense for a long time. I myself have been a chief minister for a long time and I know that such a relationship is not good for either the state or the country," Prime Minister Modi said, while inaugurating the modernised IISCO Steel Plant at the Burnpur area of Asansol in West Bengal.
"Our government has brought in a change by focussing on cooperative federalism. Delhi alone will not run the nation. India will not change without a 'team India'. The prime minister and the chief ministers are one team that will take India ahead. The nation is bigger than any political party. What has happened today would not be possible had the state government not cooperated. That is why I say 'team India'," he added.
Hailing the passing of the recent Land Border Agreement by the Parliament, the Prime Minister said that 'team India' will be capable in tackling domestic problems with ease.
"For 41 years, the boundary dispute with Bangladesh was pending. This issue was pending since Bangladesh's founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's time. Now the tension with Bangladesh is over. Team India did it. The states and all parties cooperated," he said.
"If we can solve foreign problems so easily, then tackling domestic issues should be easier," he added.
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Prime Minister Modi also vowed to make West Bengal a strong state.
"We want to uplift the east. Without Bengal being strengthened, India cannot be strong. The eastern part of India has immense potential. The people are also skilled," he said.