RAIPUR, Sep 13: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a public rally in Raigarh district of poll-bound Chhattisgarh on Thursday and also dedicate rail sector projects worth around Rs 6,350 crore during his visit to the Congress-ruled state.
The PM’s visit comes two days after the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rolled out its ‘Paivartan Yatra’ (March of Change) with an aim to oust the ruling Congress from power in the year-end assembly polls. This will be Modi’s second visit to Chhattisgarh, where the BJP lost power in 2018 after ruling the state for 15 consecutive years, in the last two-and-a-half months.
The Prime Minister’s programme will be held at Kodatarai village at around 3 pm, an official here said. The PM will dedicate important rail sector projects worth around Rs 6,350 crore on the occasion and lay the foundation stone of 50-bed each ‘critical care blocks’ to be built in nine districts of Chhattisgarh under a healthcare initiative of the Centre.
The nine critical care blocks will be built under the Pradhan Mantri-Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) at Durg, Kondagaon, Rajnandgaon, Gariaband, Jashpur, Surajpur, Surguja, Bastar and Raigarh districts at a cost of more than Rs 210 crore, he said. Modi will also distribute one lakh sickle cell counselling cards to the screened population under the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission (NSAEM), said the official.
The PM will subsequently address a rally at the same venue (Kodatarai village) from a different stage. A Chhattisgarh BJP leader in State capital Raipur said the PM’s visit and address at the rally will boost the morale of party workers ahead of the crucial polls.
“The BJP has already pushed the Congress on the backfoot by declaring candidates on 21 assembly seats. The first Parivartan Yatra of the BJP rolled out from Dantewada on Tuesday, while the second one will be kicked off on September 15 from Jashpur in north Chhattisgarh. Ahead of the second Parivartan Yatra, the PM’s rally in adjoining Raigarh district will energize party workers and boost their morale,” he said.
Modi is expected to attend the concluding function of the two parivartan yatras in Bilaspur, added the BJP leader. The BJP’s star campaigner had addressed a public meeting in Raipur on July 7, where he had given the slogan of “Badalbo badalbo ye daari Congress ke sarkar le badalbo” (will change Congress government this time). According to police, the venue of the PM’s programme has been fortified with a massive security cover.
A multi-layered security arrangement, involving personnel of the state police besides contingents of the Special Protection Group (SPG), has been made in the area, located around 8 km from Raigarh town, an official said. (PTI)
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