I am 'adopted son' of UP, says PM Modi

He said the future of the state cannot be ensured without ridding it of SP, BSP, Congress

Calling himself the “adopted son” of UP, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the future of the state could not be ensured without ridding it of the Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Congress. Invoking Lord Krishna at an election meeting here to suggest a strong connect between Gujarat and UP, Modi, who represents Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency, said the state was his “mai-baap” (parents) and he will not desert it.

“Vote for a full majority to the Bharatiya Janata Party. I promise to show you the ways of all the problems you are facing within five years,” he said, telling the crowd that all pollsters had predicted BJP getting massive support in the first two phases of polling.

Highlighting the problems faced by the state and its national importance, Modi said poverty will be removed from the country only when it is eradicated from UP.

“This is the land of Ganga and Yamuna where the land is most fertile with crores of labourours but poverty still exists here...why is this so? There is nothing wrong with the people here or their capabilities or shortage of resources,” he said.

In Lucknow, Modi echoes Indira Gandhi but doesn't announce any gains

Modi said his opponents have become "politically irrelevant'

Breaking News : Prime Minister. Narendra Modi today addressed a massive public rally in Lucknow, to launch his campaign for Uttar Pradesh assembly polls. He didn’t announce any new ‘gains’ after the 50-days of note ban ‘pain’, and only cursorily referred to the promises he made on the New Year’s Eve.

Modi said his opponents have become “politically irrelevant”, and even echoed former prime minister Indira Gandhi. She had famously said in her 1971 election campaign, where her party’s slogan was “Garibi Hatao’, remove poverty: “Wah kahate hain Indira hatao, hum kahate hain garibi hatao’’ (my opponents call for Indira’s removal, I want poverty to be removed).

In Lucknow, Modi said all opposition parties have joined forces against him. He said that the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party never see eye to eye but have in once voice criticized the note ban decision. “Wah kahate hain Modi hatao, main kahata hoon kaladhan hatao, bhrashtachar hatao (they say remove Modi, I say end black money, end corruption),” the PM said.
Modi impressed upon party workers and the public how the large gathering at the rally was proof that the BJP had already won the assembly polls. It was reminiscent of the large public rallies that Modi had addressed all across Bihar in the assembly polls in the state in October-November, where he would present the large crowds that turned up for his public meetings as a fait accompli for the elections. However, the coming together of Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal, Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United and Congress ensured the BJP and its allies were decimated in the polls.(more)

Agra-Lucknow E-way opens with Mirage, Sukhoi landing, taking off

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and rulingSamajwadi Party (SP) president Mulayam Singh Yadavtoday inaugurated the 302-km-long Agra-Lucknow Expressway, which would cut travel time between the two cities by half.

The main feature of the access-controlled greenfield expressway, completed in a record 23 months, is that it has a 3.3-km-long runway in Unnao district, offering landing and takeoff facilities for Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter planes during emergency.

A grand air show featuring six Mirage and Sukhoi figher jets presented a perfect prelude to the inaugural ceremony of the expressway, one of Akhilseh's flagship projects, apart from Lucknow Metro and Lucknow IT City.

Watch here:

(The 302-km-long access-controlled expressway, completed in a record 23 months, has a 3.3 km runway for IAF jets to land and take off during emergency)

Constructed at a cost of about Rs 15,000 crore, the expressway was inaugurated on the eve of Mulayam’s 78th birthday, as promised by Akhilesh to his father.

The six-lane expressway, which could be extended to eight lanes, traverses 10 districts -- Agra, Firozabad, Mainpuri, Etawah, Auraiya, Kannauj, Kanpur City, Unnao, Hardoi and Lucknow. It would provide seamless connectivity between Lucknow and Agra via the already operational Yamuna Expressway.

Addressing the ceremony at Bangaurmau in Unnao, Akhilesh said the expressway would spur economic activity in the region and pave the way for the ruling SP to return to power in the 2017 UP polls. Akhilesh arrived at the venue aboard his Rath, which has been specially designed for his ‘Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra’.Read more.

PM Modi indulging in 'self-praise' instead of solving Kashmir issue: Samajwadi Party

Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his Independence Day address, theSamajwadi Party (SP) on Wednesday said the former had indulged in self-praise instead of solving the Kashmir unrest issue.

Speaking to ANI, Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi said the Centre should sit and talk with the people of Kashmir, social organisations and the members of the Hurriyat.

"Pakistan's interference is increasing due to the Kashmir issue. It is a serious matter and threat for the nation. Instead of solving the problem, the Prime Minister indulges in self-praise for one-and-a-half-hour," he added.

Azmi said it should be the first priority of all the political parties to bring peace in the Valley.

"If the Prime Minister indulges in self-praise, then how will the problems of the nation end? It is the responsibility of all the political parties to bring peace to the Valley. It should be our first priority," he added.(more)

A Rs 11,000-cr floating economy

A Rs 11,000-cr floating economy

The world over, large religious congregations are known to be disaster-prone. However, Indian cities seem to have cracked the code of organising events largely free from mishaps. We look at three recent religious congregations, hosted in Ujjain, Allahabad and Puri, that have become international case studies

Ujjain Kumbh Mela, Madhya Pradeshn

Madhya Pradesh started preparation for the Ujjain Kumbh mela way back in 2012, with an initial budgetary allocation of Rs 100 crore. State's Finance MinisterJayant Malaiya demanded Rs 2,800 crore from the central government for infrastructure development in Ujjain to ease traffic pressure and ensure better health facilities, as well as uninterrupted power supply during the mela, also known as Simhastha Kumbh. In 2014-15, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhanwrote to Union finance minister Arun Jaitley, demanding Rs 3,500 crore, to which Jaitley wrote back confirming the release of only Rs 100 crore.

Later, in the 2016 Budget, the state made a provision of Rs 200 crore. Construction of 13 flyovers and 11 new roads required Rs 2,000 crore, besides a wide sewage network, 3,000-hectare land levelling, 100-km power line and creation of new ghats on an eight-km stretch.

Interestingly, despite a fund crunch as pointed out by Chouhan in his letter to Jaitley, a separate 'Vichar Kumbh' (ideological congregation) of religious experts was also organised - at a cost of Rs 45 crore. This three-day marathon meeting was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well. Read more.