Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the Navakerala Sadas, an outreach programme of the State government, at Paivalike Government Higher Secondary School at Manjeswaram here on Saturday.
However, his inaugural speech marked the sounding of the poll bugle for the Lok Sabha next year, firing salvos at the Congress for boycotting the event and attacking the Union government for financially strangulating the State government, while highlighting the achievements of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government in the State.
His speech also highlighted the struggles of the Palestine people and referred to Israel as Zionist terrorists for attacking women and children in the ongoing war with Hamas.
Mr. Vijayan did not spare the media for raking up a controversy over a specially designed luxury coach bus arranged for him and Cabinet colleagues to travel across the 140 Assembly constituencies in the next 35 days. He extended an invitation to journalists to personally inspect the vehicle.
Expressing optimism about the outreach programme, Mr. Vijayan said the LDF government had constructed four lakh houses under the LIFE Mission, a housing scheme that would benefit lakhs of homeless and landless families. Title deeds had been awarded to three lakh people and 27 lakh people received medical assistance from the government, he said.
Mr. Vijayan accused the Union government of displaying hostility towards the State government and said Kerala had to receive approximately ₹8,600 crore as GST share. He also criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government’s push for a unified election, alleging it as a threat to the country’s secularism and integrity.
Referring to the massive people participation at the venue, Mr. Vijayan said ordinary people appreciated the objective of the Navakerala Sadas. About 1,500 complaints were received at the designated counters, including exclusive desks for women, senior citizens, and the physically challenged.
Earlier, Revenue Minister K. Rajan emphasised the government’s commitment to fostering humane development in the State. He also highlighted the government’s efforts over the past seven-and-a-half years to propel Kerala into a new era of sustainable progress.
