PM Narendra Modi in Kerala Highlights (April 25): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Tuesday expressed the state's gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allocating a Vande Bharat train for the state and dedicating several development projects to the nation. The PM flagged off Kerala’s first Vande Bharat train from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod — a significant initiative ahead of the 2024 general elections. Vijayan said he was placing Kerala's "gratitude to you for allocating a Vande Bharat train" and expressed hope that more would follow. This is for the first time that the CM, who has been aggressively campaigning for the proposed SilverLine semi-high speed rail corridor project, is making any remark regarding the southern state's reception of the Vande Bharat. Meanwhile, PM Modi, who is on a two-day trip to Kerala, has said the Centre lays emphasis on cooperative federalism. “If Kerala develops, India will develop faster,” he added while speaking at an event to inaugurate a host of development projects in Thiruvananthapuram. He also reached out to the youth and church leaders in Kerala as he took on the ruling CPI(M) in the state as well as the main opposition Congress, accusing them of working against the interests of the people. Speaking at the conclave, Yuvam 2023, Modi said: “The way Northeastern states and Goa accepted the BJP, its work and its government, Kerala too will accept it in the coming days,” Modi said, as he asked the youth to stand for change. Modi said the BJP government at the Centre is working along with the youth and is making development a reality. “While previous governments were known for scams, the BJP government in the past nine years has been creating opportunities for the youth,” he said. Taking a swipe at the ruling CPI(M) and Congress in Kerala, he said, “While one party is working to promote its political interest above the interest of the state, the other is working for the interest of one family. Time has come to defeat these two political ideologies.”
