India's defence interests were compromised, PM Modi's swipe at Congress at Atal Tunnel opening
Rohtang (HP): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched a blistering attack on the Congress, saying India's defence interests were compromised under its rule, and asserted nothing is more important to his government than protecting the country.
Modi hit out at the opposition party, which headed the coalition government at the Centre during 2004-14, after inaugurating the strategically important 9.02-km Atal Tunnel, the world's longest highway tunnel which reduces the distance between Manali and Leh by 46 km and the travel time by four to five hours.
He cited a number of strategically important projects, from Atal Tunnel to the air strip at Daulat Beg Oldi in Ladakh and Tejas fighter aircraft production, to assert that they were delayed or almost forgotten and questioned as to what "compulsion" and "pressure" might have been behind it, without directly naming the Congress.
His government, the prime minister said, has deployed all its strength to develop border infrastructure, adding that never before has work been done at such a big scale, be it building roads, bridges or tunnels.
For long, he said, border projects could never come out of planning stage and those which did got stuck or were kept on the back burner.
The then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had inaugurated the approach road to Atal Tunnel in 2002 but the project was almost forgotten after his government was gone, Modi said, targeting the Congress-led UPA dispensation.
Work on only 1,300 meters was completed by 2013-14, he noted, adding that the project would have been completed by 2040 by this pace before his government took charge in 2014 and speeded it up at an unprecedented rate.
"Our govt increased the pace of construction from 300 meters/year to 1400 meters/year and completed the project in 2020," Modi said.
In just six years the government completed the work of 26 years, he said.
Just like the Atal tunnel, this treatment was meted out to several such projects, the prime minister said, adding that Daulat Beg Oldi air strip remained closed for four to five decades.
"There was no political will. I can talk about dozens of projects that are important from the strategic point of view, but for years they were neglected," he said, hitting out at the previous Congress-led governments.
"Nothing more important to us than the national interest and protecting the country, but the nation has seen an era when defence interests were compromised," he said, in an apparent swipe at the opposition party.
In this context, he also referred to the Kosi mega bridge in Bihar which was envisaged by the Vajpayee government and inaugurated by him last month.
The decisions of our government are a testimony to that it does what it says, he said.
His government has undertaken major reforms so that defence equipment could be made under 'Make in India', he said, adding that fulfilling the defence needs are his government's top priority.
Speaking of the Atal Tunnel inauguration, Modi said it is a historic day as not only has the dream of the former prime minister been fulfilled but the decades-long wait of people of the state is also over.
The tunnel will be a lifeline not just for Himachal Pradesh but also for Leh-Ladakh, he said.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh highlighted on the occasion the strategic importance of the tunnel, saying it will make soldiers' deployment and movement of weapons and ration easier. It will also be a big help to people and tourism sector, he said.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur and Union minister Anurag Thakur were also present on the occasion.
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EC dismisses scope for wrongdoing at strongrooms; prohibitory orders around Kolkata counting centres
Kolkata (PTI): A day after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee spent hours at the EVM strongroom of her Bhabanipur constituency alleging possibilities of malpractices, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Agarwal on Friday asserted there is no scope for wrongdoing at the counting centres.
Following tensions around two counting centres in Kolkata late on Thursday, police clamped prohibitory orders on gatherings outside all seven strongrooms in the city.
Stating that round-the-clock CCTV monitoring of strongrooms was in place, Agarwal dismissed the allegations as "baseless".
TMC spokesperson and Beleghata constituency candidate Kunal Ghosh said that party workers and poll aspirants were keeping a strict vigil at the counting centres, where the EVMs are stored in strongrooms, upon directions of party supremo Mamata Banerjee.
"There is no scope for any wrongdoing given the arrangements made to secure the EVMs. The Centres have been kept under thorough CCTV coverage and their live-streamed footage can be seen from outside," Agarwal told reporters.
"One should have reason and evidence for making allegations," he said, maintaining that there were no grounds for levelling charges of EVM tampering or pre-counting malpractice.
Two counting centres in Kolkata witnessed high drama late on Thursday evening after TMC leaders alleged a lack of transparency and possible malpractice at the strongrooms housing sealed EVMs of the assembly polls, which concluded on April 29.
Mamata Banerjee herself landed up at the Sakhawat Memorial School counting centre and stayed put there for about four hours. She emerged from the premises past midnight and warned against any attempts to tamper with the counting process, demanding greater transparency.
TMC leaders and candidates Sashi Panja and Kunal Ghosh held a sit-in outside the Khudiram Anushilan Kendra counting centre on Thursday evening, alleging unauthorised activities inside the strongroom amid the absence of TMC agents.
Matters came to a head after a large number of supporters from both TMC and BJP camps gathered outside the venue, shouting slogans till they were dispersed by security forces.
The EC, however, dismissed the claim, clarifying that poll officials were engaged in the task of segregating postal ballots as per due process and the strongrooms remained secure, asserting all political parties for the mandatory segregation activity were duly notified.
On Friday, Kolkata Police imposed prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the BNSS around all seven designated strong rooms in the city.
As per the order issued by Police Commissioner Ajay Nand, the restrictions prohibited the assembly of five or more persons within a 200-metre radius of each strongroom, along with a ban on processions, demonstrations, and carrying of weapons or explosive materials.
The measure, which aims to prevent any breach of peace, violence, or disturbance during the storage of ballot papers and polled EVMs, will remain in force until the commencement of counting on May 4.
Besides the two counting centres in question, the prohibitory orders were also clamped around the Hastings House complex, APC Polytechnic College, St. Thomas Boys' High School, Ballygunge Government High School and the David Hare Training College counting premises.
A senior police officer said enhanced security arrangements have been made at Khudiram Anushilan Kendra, the counting centre for several assembly seats in north and east Kolkata housing EVM strong rooms.
"Additional CAPFs and armed police forces have also been deployed under the supervision of an additional commissioner and a deputy commissioner of police," Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Kolkata, Rupesh Kumar, told reporters after visiting the area.
Expressing apprehension that unauthorised movements might occur when a section of postal ballots is brought in the evening, Kunal Ghosh said on Friday morning that the party's polling agents and candidates have been alerted about the matter.
Minister Shashi Panja, who also arrived at Khudiram Anushilan Kendra in the morning, maintained that "transparency" should be ensured for all strongroom activities.
Ghosh told reporters on Friday that though they had seen some movement in a strongroom that allegedly stored postal ballots, there was no such movement on Friday morning.
Meanwhile, Banerjee's challenger at Bhabanipur and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari took a dig at the chief minister for her late-night visit to the counting centre.
"I want to reassure the people of Bhabanipur and of West Bengal that the TMC candidate and outgoing chief minister was prevented from taking any additional advantage. Despite her best intentions to the contrary, she wasn't allowed to act in violation of rules," Adhikari wrote on social media platforms, posting a picture of Banerjee sitting at what appeared to be an area outside the counting centre strong room.
"Till such time she was present there, my election agent, advocate Surjyanil Das personally positioned himself at the spot keeping a tight watch on her so that she isn't able to take recourse to improper means," he added.
Security forces kept a strict vigil in and around counting centres and strongrooms in Kolkata and other districts where EVM machines used in the state assembly elections are stored, an official said.
Sakhawat Memorial School in south Kolkata's Bhabanipur, which saw high drama till the early hours of Friday with the chief minister spending several hours at the counting centre, wore a peaceful look in the morning with security personnel guarding the area.
