While the National Democratic Alliance is keen on holistic infrastructure and industrial development of the nation, the nepotism-ridden United Progressive Alliance is for dynasty rule for the benefit of their children and their grandchildren, Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed in Kanniyakumari on Friday.
Addressing an Assembly election campaign meeting, Mr. Modi said the NDA government which had planned to create Kanniyakumari – Mumbai Industrial Corridor, had allocated over ₹1 lakh crore for infrastructure development in Tamil Nadu.
The prime objective of the NDA government was that prosperous farming sector, bubbling industrial sector, animated small and marginal businesses, well-developed coastal sector and fishing industry by designing appropriate policies. Locally made products would be given opportunities for selling the products in global markets with GI tag.
He said the NDA Government, besides resurrecting the lost assets like Rameswaram to Dhanushkodi railway track lost in the 1964 cyclone, was creating, new infrastructure through out of the box solutions for better rail connectivity with the island by building new bridge at Pamban.
Since Kanniyakumari has sizable fishermen living in more than 45 coastal hamlets from Arockiyapuram to Neerodi, whose votes played crucial role in the trouncing of BJP candidate for Kanniyakumari Lok Sabha constituency in the 2019 general elections, Mr. Modi said his government would create new fishing harbours, fish landing centres, due financial allocation for buying new mechanised boats with better navigation and communication gadgets.
“Moreover, we will ensure better connectivity between the fishing harbours and the hinter land so as to enable the fishermen to reach their markets for getting better price,” he said.
He said new ports would be developed besides modernising existing seaports with most-modern facilities for better cargo handling. However, he did not elaborate if he was referring to the Kanyakumari International Container Transhipment Terminal, which is being strongly opposed by locals. The terminal remains a poll issue.
Coming down heavily on the UPA and its allies, especially the DMK, Mr. Modi said the senior leaders of the Dravidian party, who had worked shoulder-to-shoulder with late M. Karunanidhi, had to work with the ‘Crown Prince’ of the party as the party was keen on dynasty rule.
He chided the Congress, heading the UPA, of having dismissed both the AIADMK and the DMK governments in the past using Article 356 of the Constitution. “It’s quite undemocratic without understanding local sentiments,” he said.
As the Prime Minister came to Kanniyakumari, housing sizable Christian population, on Good Friday, he recalled the sacrifices and services of Jesus Christ for the poor even as the crowd received it with wild cheers.
“We are for Indians and not for any particular caste or religion. We rescued the nurses abducted in Iraq. We rescued Rev. Fr. Alexis Premkumar from his abductors of Afghanistan and Rev. Fr. Tom from his abductors of Yemen. When I personally called Fr. Alexis’s sister to inform her that he was safe even after being a hostage for 18 months, she could not believe it. We don’t treat people based on their faith or religion,” Mr Modi contended.
“After the NDA came to power, no fisherman is in the custody of Sri Lanka. We ensured the release of 40 fishermen with 4 boats as we treat everyone as Indians,” Mr. Modi. The same spirit enabled his government to ensure the safe repatriation of several lakh Indians under ‘Vande Bharat’ programme floated for evacuating the stranded Indians from various countries in the wake of COVID-19 crisis.