CM Adityanath heaps praises on Modi, sounds 2024 poll bugle from Noida

Adityanath also thanked the farmers who gave their land for the upcoming Noida International Airport that is being developed at Jewar, slated to become operational on September 29, 2024

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday inaugurated projects worth ₹1,719 crore in Noida and Greater Noida, in what he said was part of the development initiatives being taken by the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled central government.

CM Yogi Adityanath addresses party workers at the Noida Stadium on Sunday, before inaugurating multiple projects. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

During the CM’s eight-hour long visit in the cities, he also addressed party workers at his first stop at Noida Stadium at around 11.40am, where he highlighted the works undertaken by the BJP since it came to power at the Centre and took a dig at the Opposition over their recent efforts of uniting against the PM Modi-led party, before appealing to the people to vote for the party in the upcoming general elections.

“In the nine years of (PM) Modi government at the Centre, the country is on the path of progress and development. In line with this development model, the Uttar Pradesh government is dedicating projects worth ₹1,719 crore for the general public of Noida,” he said in his 25-minute-long address to a 10,000-strong crowd .

This was Adityanath’s first visit to the twin cities this year.

The inaugurated projects included a host of infrastructure projects such as the Parthala flyover, an underpass at Sector 137 and Vedvan Park in Sector 78. He also laid the foundation stone for a number of projects, including the Astoli waste-to-energy plant in Greater Noida.

The CM also hailed the country’s forward movement and presence on global platforms, and the upcoming G20 summit which comes as India celebrates its 75 years of Independence. “Soon, Noida will host a G20 event and it is a matter of pride for all of us,” he said.

On the law and order situation in the twin cities, Adityanath said, “We have recently provided 56 vehicles to the Gautam Budh Nagar police. Earlier, people used to hesitate to visit or reside in UP, but since 2017, the perception has changed. Today, people from all over the world want to come to Noida and set up their business here. Noida has become a favourite destination for domestic as well as global investors”.

The BJP heavyweight also took a dig at the Opposition, which has been raising a pitch for a united front in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. “The Samajwadi party (SP) and the Congress got united in the past but were defeated by the people of the state,” he said. This came two days after the Opposition parties met for the first time in Patna on Friday.

Yogi also attacked the Congress as he spoke on the 48th anniversary of the Emergency. He said: “When there were threats to democracy during Indira Gandhi’s tenure as Prime Minister in 1975, the leadership of Jayaprakash Narayan took a firm stand and invited Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani to fight the Congress.”

The CM also highlighted the initiatives the party took in other cities of the state. “The state of UP is blessed to have the holy cities of Varanasi, Ayodhya and Mathura. Under the leadership of Modi ji, who is also the member of Parliament from Varanasi, the holiest city of Hindus has seen a sea change. Similarly, Ayodhya is also witnessing a transformation. Sanatanis from all over the world are waiting for Ram Lala to take his seat in Ayodhya’s upcoming Ram temple. Mathura is also set to witness divine transformation”.

He then talked about the welfare measures taken by both the Centre and the state. “We were able to handle the Covid-19 pandemic successfully as we gave free vaccines to every citizen of the country. The Union government is also providing free ration to 800 million people”.

Adityanath also thanked the farmers who gave their land for the upcoming Noida International Airport that is being developed at Jewar, slated to become operational on September 29, 2024. “We have completed the phase 1 work at Jewar airport. We want to thank our farmers who gave their land for the airport project”, the chief minister said.

The other new projects in the cities included a ₹200 crore robotics centre in Greater Noida. After its inauguration, the CM left for Lucknow at around 7pm.

Meanwhile, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, at a separate event, targeted the BJP, and said that the “current situation in the country was worse than it was during the Emergency”.

“Today there is action on speaking the truth. Action is taken on asking questions to the government. No one can expect justice in the BJP government. The constitutional and democratic rights of the people are being snatched away. Constitutional institutions are being weakened. Press freedom is in danger,” he said.

The Congress also slammed the BJP on alleged non-completion of projects. “We have seen in Noida that the projects started by the UP government are not being completed and the party is not addressing the grievances of all sections of the society. The BJP governments in UP and the Centre are making false promises to people and trying to mislead general public,” said Pawan Sharma, Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee member.