West Bengal is heading for a politically eventful day on Thursday, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi scheduled to attend two major events—one administrative and the other political—in Alipurduar district, located in the northern part of the state.
This will be the Prime Minister’s first official visit to both Alipurduar and West Bengal after the Lok Sabha elections last year. Prior to the elections, he had visited the state multiple times to campaign for the BJP.
At the administrative programme, the Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for the City Gas Distribution (CGD) project in the Alipurduar and Cooch Behar districts.
The project, worth over ₹1,010 crore, aims to provide Piped Natural Gas (PNG) to more than 2.5 lakh households and over 100 commercial establishments and industries. It will also provide Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) by establishing around 19 CNG stations in line with the Minimum Work Program (MWP) targets stipulated by the Union Government.
The administrative event will be followed by the Prime Minister’s address at a political rally in Alipurduar, where he is expected to speak about the success of ‘Operation Sindoor’, a military strike in which Indian armed forces successfully demolished several terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Political observers feel that Alipurduar has been strategically chosen as the venue for the Prime Minister’s post-‘Operation Sindoor’ programmes due to its geographical significance, with the Chicken Neck corridor on one side and the Seven Sisters of the North-East on the other.
At the political rally, PM Modi is also expected to launch a scathing attack on the West Bengal government and the ruling Trinamool Congress, as hinted by the Prime Minister in a post on X on Wednesday.
“I will be addressing a BJP West Bengal public meeting in Alipurduar tomorrow afternoon. Over the last decade, the various schemes of the NDA Government have been greatly appreciated by the people of West Bengal. At the same time, they are tired of the corruption and poor administration of the TMC,” the Prime Minister’s message on Wednesday read.
— IANS