PM Modi says strong Central government is essential for national development

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said only a strong government at the Centre could harness the power of States to spur national development.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said only a strong government at the Centre could harness the power of States to spur national development.

On April 25, Mr. Modi was in Thiruvananthapuram to flag off the Vande Bharath Express Train. He also announced several railway development projects, launched the Kochi Water Metro and laid the foundation stone for the Digital Science Park.

Mr. Modi’s comment came at a mammoth public meeting at Central Stadium. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, in his welcome speech, had stressed the need to preserve and reinforce cooperative federalism.

The perspective of the leaders on Centre-State relations assumed political import against the backdrop of the raging nationwide controversy centred around the Union Government’s alleged trespasses on federalism and jurisdictional power and fiscal sovereignty of provincial governments.

In what appeared to be an election pitch ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Mr. Modi said that only a strong Central government, which takes proactive decisions in the national interest, could catalyse economic development and social progress by marching in lockstep with State governments.

Mr. Modi said service mentality guided the Centre’s actions. For one, it had invested heavily in developing robust and future-proof digital and physical connectivity.

“Such nation-building infrastructure would benefit the people uniformly, irrespective of their economic status, religion, caste, community or region. It would bring people closer, bridge the gap between cultures, and strengthen the concept of Ek Bharath (one nation). The era of ease of living and business has arrived”, Mr. Modi said.