The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh said that peace and harmony are a pre-requisite for meaningful development. He said Assam has witnessed turbulent times in the recent past. He said it is to the credit of the people of this State that they have been able to successfully combat fissiparous forces. Expressing happiness over meeting the representatives of the banned United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA), Dr. Singh reiterated that dialogue is the only method for fostering greater understanding and resolving vexed problems. He mentioned that a number of initiatives have been taken by both the Central and the State Government towards this end. The Prime Minister stated the establishment of Territorial and Hill Councils has provided a forum to address genuine needs of the people of the State.The Prime Minister was giving away the prestigious Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Award for National Integration to eminent journalist MJ Akbar and Gandhian Hem Bharali for the years- 2008 and 2009 at an impressive function at Guwahati on Friday evening.The award carries a cash of two lakh rupees, a shaw and a citation. The Prime Minister Dr. Singh also unveiled the foundation stone of the Guwahati Water Supply Project. The project, being executed with financial assistance from Japan International Cooperation Agency, will benefit a large segment of the population of Guwahati. The Prime Minister Dr. Singh will move to the Rampur village in Kamrup Rural district on Saturday morning for an on-the-spot study of the implementation of the multi-sectoral development programme (MSDP) launched by the Ministry of Minority Affairs. Later in the day, the Prime Minister will lay the foundation stones of the National Institute of Design and the Petroleum Institute at Sibsagar and Jorhat in Upper Assam, respectively, before his departure to New Delhi.