Country doesn’t need shortcut politics, it needs sustainable development — PM Modi

Nagpur, Dec. 11 (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said India needed sustainable development and not “shortcut politics”, and alleged that some parties were trying to destroy the country’s economy.

Addressing a gathering after launching and inaugurating various projects worth INR 75,000 crore here, Modi said narrow approach towards development will provide only limited opportunities.

He also said that infrastructure development in the country in the last eight years has been done with a human touch.

The prime minister inaugurated the first phase of the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway that connects Nagpur and temple town of Shirdi in Ahmednagar district, flagged off the Nagpur-Bilaspur Vande Bharat Express train, inaugurated the first phase of the Nagpur Metro Rail project and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Nagpur.

“A developed India can become a reality through united strength, progress and development of all states. When we have a narrow approach towards development, opportunities are also limited,” he said at the function held at the AIIMS campus on Wardha Road here.

“In the last eight years, we have changed the mindset and approach with ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vishwas and Sabka Prayas’ (everyone’s support, trust and efforts),” he said.

Modi said the projects launched and inaugurated in Nagpur presented a holistic vision of development.

He urged people to remain cautious against politicians indulging in shortcut politics, looting taxpayers’ money and grabbing power through false promises.

“Country’s development cannot take place through shortcut politics,” he said.

“Some political parties are trying to destroy the country’s economy and people should expose such politicians and parties. My appeal to all political leaders is to focus on sustainable development instead of shortcut politics. You can win elections with sustainable development,” he said.

He said, earlier, taxpayers’ money used to get wasted in corruption and votebank politics.

According to Modi, his government was focusing on holistic and modern infrastructure development which is “future ready”.

Modi described 11 development projects inaugurated by him as “jewels” of Maharashtra.

He said the double engine government was steering development in the state.

The PM slammed the previous governments citing the example of the Gosikhurd dam project in Bhandara district, which got delayed for three decades.

“But after the double engine government came to power the Gosikhurd project is nearing completion now,” he said.

Deprived sections of the society were a priority for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, he said, adding that sustainable development and sustainable solution paved the way for the party’s big win in the just-concluded Assembly polls in Gujarat.

He said the Ayushman Bharat scheme was an example of social infrastructure development, while the Jan Dhan Yojana was an example of financial infrastructure development.

“Today is Sankashti Charturthi. All good work is started after offering prayers to Lord Ganesh. I offer my salutations to the Tekdi Ganpati bappa (in Nagpur),” Modi said in Marathi at the beginning of his speech.

Modi said the Samruddhi Expressway will provide modern connectivity and promote businesses in 24 districts and farmers will benefit from the project.

Modi inaugurated the first phase of the Nagpur Metro rail project by taking a ride in the train between Zero Mile Freedom Park and Khapri stations with some students of the AIIMs, with whom he interacted on the way. Before boarding the train, he visited an exhibition on the project at the Zero Mile station.

After inaugurating the Samruddhi Expressway, he travelled on its 10-km stretch in a car. The length of the total project, officially named as ‘Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg’, will be 701 km. The stretch under the first phase is 520-km long.

He also laid the foundation stone of redevelopment of Nagpur and Ajni railway stations. Under the project, the Nagpur railway station will be equipped with enhanced waiting area and sitting capacity, a parking facility for two-wheelers and cars, 30 lifts, and 31 escalators to provide a world-class travel experience to passengers and boost socio-economic development in and around the station.

He laid the foundation stone of National Institute of One Health, Nagpur and Nag river pollution abatement project. He also remotely inaugurated the Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering and Technology (CIPET) at Chandrapur and Centre for Research Management and Control of Hemoglobinopathies at Chandrapur.

Talking about the expressway, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said the work on six other expressways in Maharashtra was currently on and 150 ‘green highways’ were being built at a cost of INR 75,000 crore.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde spoke about the challenges faced in the construction of the expressway and described land acquisition as the biggest one. He also said that the expressway will be a game-changer for the state.

Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis said his dream of the Samruddhi Expressway has become reality thanks to PM Modi. He said the land acquisition for the entire project was completed in nine months.

“Some leaders were opposing the project and inciting people not to give their land for it. However, with the consent of the people, the land acquisition process was completed in nine months,” Fadnavis said.