THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Further escalating the PM SHRI row, former general education minister V Sivankutty has produced what he described as “proof” that the centrally sponsored scheme has not moved beyond the agreement stage.
He also contested Chief Minister V D Satheesan’s claim that the UDF government was bound to continue with the scheme because the previous LDF government had received Central funds after signing the PM SHRI agreement.
Addressing a news conference here on Saturday, Sivankutty produced a letter dated May 8, 2026, reportedly sent by Union Education Secretary Sanjay Kumar to Chief Secretary A Jayathilak, urging the state government to expedite the implementation of PM SHRI.
Quoting from the letter, Sivankutty said the Centre itself had acknowledged that the project had not progressed as the state had informed it that a report from the then Council of Ministers on the scheme’s implementation was awaited.
The letter also noted that PM SHRI was a five-year scheme scheduled to conclude in 2027 and urged the state to expedite its implementation. “The chief minister’s main argument that the Centre had not communicated anything after the LDF government kept PM SHRI in abeyance, has now been proven false,” Sivankutty said.