The Big Four: Why PM Narendra Modi is visiting these southern states in two days

Thank God it’s Friday! And an action-packed one for Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is known for being quite the workaholic. The PM has been on his feet all day, as he started his southern sojourn. He is visiting four states in two days – Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh.

The signs are hard to miss. The election season is kicking off. Two of these states, Karnataka and Telangana, are going to the polls soon. In the former, elections are only months away; in the latter, in less than a year. Of course, it’s all groundwork for the big 2024 general elections, as Modi eyes the third tenure.

The PM will attend many events and lay foundation stones for projects worth Rs 25,000 crore. We take a look at his hectic itinerary and the significance of his visit to the states.

The first stop, Karanataka

The first stop was Karnataka, where PM inaugurated the semi-high-speed Vande Bharat Express, the first in south India, and the swanky Terminal 2 at the Kempegowda International Airport, built a cost of Rs 5,000 crore. He also launched the Bharat Gaurav Kashi Darshan train.

Modi paid tributes to poet-saint Kanakadasa, who is revered across communities, at Vidhana Soudha on the occasion of Kanakadasa Jayanthi.

The highlight of the visit was the unveiling of the much-hyped statue of the Bengaluru founder Nadaprabhu Hiriya Kempegowda. The 108-feet statue – dubbed the “Statue of Prosperity” – has entered the Guinness Book of World Records for being the first and tallest statue of a city’s founder.

Another statue of the 16th-century chieftain of the Vijayanagara empire will also be installed within the Vidhana Soudha premises within a year.

The installation of the statues and their timing is of significance, as Karanataka gears up for Assembly polls. Kempegowda is the most prominent figure of the Vokkaligas, the second-most dominant community in the state. It has traditionally supported the Janata Dal (Secular) and Congress. Now the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has never won a clear majority in the state, is doing all it can to woo the Vokkaliga voters.

“I also had the opportunity to unveil the 108 feet statue of Nadaprabhu Kempegowda and perform his Jalabhishek. This gigantic statue of Prabhu Kempegowda will inspire us to work relentlessly for the Bangalore of the future, the India of the future,” the PM said in Bengaluru.

In a tweet, Modi called Kempegowda “a visionary who always put the welfare of people above everything else”.

The role of Sri Nadaprabhu Kempegowda in the making of Bengaluru is unparalleled. He is remembered as a visionary who always put the welfare of people above everything else. Honoured to inaugurate the ‘Statue of Prosperity’ in Bengaluru. pic.twitter.com/zoMIXIYFf1

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 11, 2022

This is just the first of the PM’s many expected visits to the poll-bound state, where the BJP says it has already started preparation. His visit is expected to only infuse more energy into party workers preparing for the election battle.

Making inroads in Tamil Nadu

From Karnataka, the PM went to Tamil Nadu. Here he addressed the 36th convocation ceremony of Gandhigram Rural Institute in Tamil Nadu where more than 2,300 students of the 2018-19 and 2019-20 batches received their degrees.

Addressing 36th Convocation of Gandhigram Rural Institute in Tamil Nadu. Best wishes to the graduating bright minds. https://t.co/TnzFtd24ru

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 11, 2022

The BJP has not managed to win the state but has over the years turned into a strong opposition. Under the leadership of state chief K Annamalai, the party has claimed to be the “third force” in Tamil Nadu. In the urban local body by-polls in February, the BJP made its inroads by winning over 300 seats; it had fielded candidates for almost 5,600 seats of the more than 12,800.

The saffron party has tied up with the main Opposition the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), which will lead the alliance in Tamil Nadu.

Keeping the fight on in Telangana

Telangana just concluded a crucial by-poll where the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) survived a tough contest with the BJP. It was dubbed by experts as a “semi-final” before the Assembly polls of 2023.

Both parties had launched a high-decibel election campaign for the Munugode seat and while the TRS emerged victorious, it is clear that the saffron party cannot be taken for granted.

Modi is not the one to lose momentum and hence his visit to the state is crucial. On Saturday, the PM will lay the foundation stone of multiple projects worth in Telangana. Key among these are the Rs 9,500-crore Ramagundam Fertiliser Plant and the Bhadrachalam Road-Sattupalli rail line built at a cost of around Rs 1,000 crore.

“When Modi is in election mode, he is in election mode and nobody can stop him,” Chennai-based political analyst Sumanth C Raman told CNN-New18, emphasising the significance of the prime minister’s visit.

“If there are setbacks in the Hindi heartland, there needs to be an offset in terms of numbers from other states like West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Telangana etc where the upside is still available. PM Modi is coming right in the middle of the Gujarat campaign which is very significant,” he added.

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao is a staunch critic of Modi and has been attempting to form a grand alliance against the BJP ahead of the 2024 general elections.

Infrastructure push in Andhra Pradesh

In Andhra Pradesh, the focus has been on the big infrastructure push. PM Modi will inaugurate multiple projects including a section of the six-lane Greenfield Raipur-Visakhapatnam Economic Corridor built at Rs 3750 crore and the U-field Onshore Deepwater block project of ONGC costing more than Rs 2,900 crore. He will lay the foundation stone for the 745-km-long Srikakulam Angul Natural Gas Pipeline Project of GAIL to be built at a cost of more than Rs 2,650 crore, according to a report in CNN-News18.

Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has been keen that the PM launches these projects, as he looks to maintain a cordial relationship with the Centre, the report says.

With inputs from agencies

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