Becoming the first world leader to address the Bhutan Parliament, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday, strongly pitched for a South Asia that is ‘at peace with itself’ and expressed India’s readiness to assist in making the region more secure and prosperous.

Singh, who was on a two-day visit here, assured Bhutan that India will stand by the Himalayan country as a factor of stability and support.

“India desires to see a South Asia which is at peace with itself. It is with this objective we look towards working further with Bhutan, in both the bilateral and regional context,” he told the Bhutan National Assembly.
Singh announced that India will begin construction of the first ever rail link with Bhutan, to mark the 50th anniversary of the visit of late Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to the landlocked nation. The rail line will link Bhutan to the entire railway network of India, he said.

He said India will institute a Nehru-Wangchuck Scholarship to encourage students from Bhutan to study in leading Indian universities and institutions.

Seeking to tap the hydro-power resources of the mountain kingdom, Singh said: “We will work with Bhutan to develop two new mega hydro-power projects, Punatsangchhu-II and Mangdechhu. We will commence the preparation of detailed project reports for four new projects”.

During Singh’s talks with his Bhutanese counterpart Jigmi Y Thinley on Friday, the two sides agreed to double the hydro-power generation target to 10,000 MW by 2020.

Singh said India remained committed to working with Bhutan in support of the 10th Five Year Plan, a period that will lay the building blocks for the country’s development.