Oommen Chandy Govt Completed All Work For Vizhinjam Port, Claims VD Satheesan Ahead Of PM Modi’s Launch

Leader of Opposition in the Kerala assembly V D Satheesan on Thursday said the then Oommen Chandy government did not just lay the stone for the Vizhinjam port, it completed all the necessary steps for the launch of the project which became delayed due to the subsequent LDF administration's inaction.

Satheesan was hitting back at Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who a day ago had said that mere laying of the stone was not sufficient to claim credit for the project and steps had to be taken for ensuring ships arrive at the port.

The CM had also said that the project was not the initiative of the LDF government from 2016-2021 or the UDF government before that, rather it was the realisation of a process that was going on in the state for decades of which the last nine years of Left administration were the most important period.

Speaking to reporters here, Satheesan said that there was a lot of groundwork to be done before a stone of any project is laid.

He said that the then UDF government completed all the steps, including getting Centre's approval, environment clearance, working out a rehabilitation package for those who would be affected by the coming of the port and getting administrative and technical sanction for it, required for launching the project and then laid the stone.

"We started a countdown for the completion of the project and if the subsequent LDF governments had worked in the same form as us, the port could have been inaugurated in 2019.

"But the completion of the port was delayed till 2025 as the Left government only kept giving more time to Adani Ports to complete the work and did not seek compensation from them for the delay," Satheesan contended.

He also pointed out that the road and rail connectivity to the port was supposed to be completed by 2017 and 2019, respectively, but work for neither has even commenced.

The opposition leader also said that the Congress and UDF did not protest against the port, it only supported and joined the agitation of the affected people who were seeking rehabilitation.

Regarding the issue of him attending the event, he clearly stated that he would not be going as he was invited as an afterthought following the controversy over his exclusion and also due to the fact that no one else except the PM, CM and Union ministers were permitted to speak at the event.

"I was excluded as they were afraid I would utter some unpleasant truths. That shows their (government) propriety. I have no issues with that. I am not even protesting against it," he added.

Vijayan on Wednesday, at a press conference here, had clarified that Satheesan was among the invitees approved by the government in connection with the event for commissioning of the Vizhinjam International Port.

"The invitations went out to everyone only now after the programme was approved by the Prime Minister's Office as the PM was attending it. I, therefore, do not see any reason for him to avoid participating in the event," he had said.

Satheesan, however, accused state Ports Minister V N Vasavan of lying with regard to his alleged exclusion from the event, alleging that the minister had initially said that the opposition leader would not be invited as the port commissioning was part of the government's 4th anniversary celebrations which has been boycotted by the UDF.

The opposition leader also sought a clarification from the BJP's state leadership whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi was arriving in Kerala for the state government's 4th anniversary celebrations.

The deep-water port has been developed by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ), India's largest port developer and part of the Adani Group, under a public-private partnership model at an estimated cost of Rs 8,867 crore.

The port received the commercial commissioning certificate on December 4 last year following the successful completion of its trial run.

It is expected to be fully operational by 2028 after the completion of the second, third, and fourth phases. 

(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)

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