Kochi (Kerala): Prime Minister Narendra Modi who landed in Kerala for a two-day visit, held a mega roadshow in Kochi on Monday. Sporting traditional Kerala attire, PM Modi walked through the streets of Kochi. People queued up on both sides of the road and cheered for the Prime Minister. They also showered flower petals on him. PM Modi was also seen shaking hands with people. After walking for over 15 minutes, the security personnel escorted him to an SUV.
The roadshow was markedly different from the PM's other roadshows, where he usually rides in an open-top vehicle. PM Modi's roadshow in Kerala is being seen as a show of strength in the southern state where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is aiming to make inroads ahead of next year's general elections.
During his Kerala visit, Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone and inaugurate projects worth more than Rs 3200 crore in Kerala. He will flag off Kerala's first Vande Bharat Express between Thiruvananthapuram and Kasargod at Thiruvananthapuram Central Station on Tuesday.
According to Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the train will cover 11 districts namely Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Pathanamthitta, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargod. Prime Minister will inaugurate the Kochi Water Metro, one of its kind project that connects 10 islands around Kochi through battery-operated electric hybrid boats for seamless connectivity with the city.
Apart from Kochi Water Metro, rail electrification of the Dindigul-Palani-Palakkad section will also be inaugurated by the Prime Minister. During the event, Prime Minister will also lay the foundation of various rail projects including the redevelopment of Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode, and Varkala Sivagiri railway stations; the comprehensive development of Thiruvananthapuram area including Nemon and Kochuveli and increasing of sectional speed of Thiruvananthapuram-Shoranur section.
PM Modi will further lay the foundation stone of the Digital Science Park in Thiruvananthapuram. Digital Science Park is envisaged as a key research facility to develop digital products and services by industry and business units in collaboration with academia. As a third generation Science Park, the Digital Science Park will house common facilities to support the development of products in the area of Industry 4.0 Technologies like AI, data analytics, cyber security, smart materials etc, said the PMO statement.
The state-of-the-art basic infrastructure will support high-end applied research by industries and the co-development of products in association with the Universities. The initial investment for Phase-1 of the project is around Rs 200 crore while the total project outlay has been estimated at around Rs 1515 crore. (ANI)
