Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued a stern warning to his opponents on Sunday, saying that those “conspiring” against him would only bite the dust. On his first visit to native town Vadnagar, Modi used the Lord Shiva's poison analogy to lash out at his opponents. He said he has the blessings of “Bhole Baba” who has given him the strength to deal with all those who have been spewing venom against him since 2001.
After offering prayers at the Hatkeshwar Mahadev temple in Vadnagar, Modi said, “The blessings of Bhole Baba gave me strength to digest poison. As a result, I was able to counter all those who spewed venom against me since 2001. This ability gave me the strength to serve the motherland with dedication over these many years.” Later, speaking in Bharuch, he said the previous government had only fooled the farmers by making only 30 per cent neem coating of urea mandatory.
“But we made 100 per cent neem coating mandatory and it can be used only in agriculture now. The theft and black marketing area has stopped and (urea) thieves have started conspiring against him.” Modi added, “But I am Modi. I have risen from the land of Gandhi and Sardar. So it does not matter how many thieves come and go, but ultimately truth and honesty will win.”
Modi hit out at the opposition Congress party throughout his 30-minute address to the people in Vadnagar, without naming the party. “You will be surprised to know the way country was ruled earlier. It was only when Atal Bihari Vajpayee become the PM, a health policy was framed. But the subsequent government that ruled for 10 years despised the idea of development. They were insensitive to the well-being of people. But we have now come out with a new health policy,” he said.
Foundation laid for £140.5 mn Rajkot airport
Prime Minister Modi on Saturday laid the foundation stone for the £140.5 million greenfield airport for Rajkot, six-laning of Ahmedabad-Rajkot National Highway and four-laning of Rajkot-Morbi state highway at a function held in Chotila taluka of Surendranagar. He also dedicated to the nation a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar.
The proposed Rajkot airport near Hirasar, 30 km from Rajkot city, is expected to become operational in the next five years. At present, people from Saurashtra have to travel to Ahmedabad to board flights for abroad. Rajkot, the commercial capital of Saurashtra, is a home to auto parts, engineering goods and imitation jewellery, while nearby Morbi is the biggest ceramic cluster in Asia.
In July 2017, the Union ministry of civil aviation granted approval and `site clearance' for the new Rajkot International Airport that will be spread over 2,500 acres. The present domestic airport is right in the middle of the city and has no scope of expansion. The present air strip can cater to only small planes. Rajkot currently has five daily flights -four to Mumbai and one to Delhi.
According to AAI, the new airport will be developed in phases to maintain operational continuity. The area of the building will be done depending of the final passenger capacity and cargo traffic calculations. The overall capacity of the completed terminal will be balanced with present days assessment of future maximum runway capacity.
