Dehradun/Rudrapur: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday accused the Congress of doing negative politics at a time when Uttarakhand is progressing on the path of development and advised the party to desist from the habit if it wished to survive.
Shah listed the achievements of the BJP-led governments at the centre and in the state as he slammed a social media post by a Congress leader earlier in the day asking the Union Minister not to return without telling the people what the BJP government had done for the state.
“Congress is always doing negative politics, especially when development is taking place in Uttarakhand. It is like somebody squeezing lemon into milk so that it goes sour,” the Union Minister said addressing the Investment Festival event held at Rudrapur in Udham Singh Nagar district.
Investment MoUs worth Rs 3.5 lakh crore had been signed at the global investors summit held in Dehradun in December 2023. The event on Saturday marked the start of the implementation of works worth more than Rs one lakh crore from among these MoUs.
Replying to the remarks by the Congress leader whom he did not name, Shah said in ten years between 2004 and 2014, the Congress government gave Rs 53,000 crore to Uttarakhand while the Narendra Modi government gave Rs one lakh eighty six thousand crore to the state in ten years from 2014-2024 which is 3.5 times more than the amount given by the Congress government.
Apart from that, the Modi government gave Rs 31,000 crore to the state for roads, Rs 40,000 crore for railway tracks and Rs 100 crore for airports. If all of this is put together, the BJP government gave over 4.25 times more than what was given to the state by the Congress government.
“It is the collective responsibility of all political parties to rise above their differences and stand unitedly in support of development. But Congress continues to do negative politics,” Shah said and advised the Congress to stop putting hurdles on the path of progress.
“Havan mein haddiyan mat dalo (Do not sabotage the good work). If you don’t stop, then even the few of you who remain in the picture will not be visible even with the help of a telescope,” Shah warned the Congress leaders in the state.
He said India was all set to become the third-largest economy in the world by 2027 under the leadership of Narendra Modi.
He said that when Atal Bihari Vajpayee demitted office, India was the 11th largest economy in the world.
“From that position, Narendra Modi has led the country to the fourth position and I assure you, it is all set to become the third largest economy in the world by 2027,” he said.
In ten years, there has been a 60 per cent increase in the length of national highways built across the country, the exports have gone up by 76 per cent, 88 new airports have been built and 25 crore poor have risen above the poverty line, he said.
However, a developed India is not possible without a developed Uttarakhand, he said and showered praise on Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami for starting the implementation process of MoUs worth more than Rs 1 lakh crore.
“It is a big achievement as bringing investments to the hills is more difficult than bringing investments to the plains. The chief minister introduced 30 new policies, including on tourism, MSME, startups, film city and the service sector to make it easier for investors to invest in the state.
“He has also established a single window clearance system to simplify the process and build an atmosphere more conducive for investments,” Shah said.
Ayurveda, yoga, naturopathy and organic farming will be the cornerstone of the development of Uttarakhand, he said.
Shah said the upcoming Chardham all-weather road and ropeway projects to Kedarnath and Hemkund Sahib will boost tourism in the state in a big way, generating employment opportunities for locals.
He said when Atal Bihari Vajpayee created three new states — Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand — doubts were expressed over the success of the experiment with small states.
“But today all three states created by him are standing on their feet and are making progress,” he said.
The Union minister also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of projects worth Rs 1,271 crore before addressing the gathering at Manoj Sircar Sports Stadium – the venue for the Investment Festival.
