BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh capital of Bhopal will host Prime Minister Narendra Modi in two grand events on Monday. First is the unveiling of the country’s first world-class railway station — Rani Kamlapati Junction (formerly named Habibganj) — and second is addressing the Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas to mark the birth anniversary of tribal icon and freedom fighter Birsa Munda.
The twin events are seen as a major move by BJP to win back the crucial Scheduled Tribe votes, which did not go to the BJP in the last Assembly polls in MP and also in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
Other than celebrating Munda, the move to rename the station after a tribal queen shows how keen the BJP is on these votes.
According to BJP sources, more than three lakh tribal people from across the state are likely to attend the Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas event at Jamboree Maidan.
Enthused by its recent success in by-elections in the Jobat-ST Assembly seat and tribal-dominated Khandwa Lok Sabha seat, BJP is focusing on a series of tribal-centric initiatives.
The PM will launch the ‘Ration Aapke Gram’ scheme aimed at delivering ration to beneficiaries from the tribal community in their villages every month, so that they don’t have to travel far.
He will also hand over genetic counselling cards to beneficiaries, marking the launch of the Madhya Pradesh Sickle Cell (Hemoglobinopathy) Mission.
The Mission has been developed to screen and manage patients suffering from sickle cell anaemia, Thalassemia and other Hemoglobinopathies, whose impact is seen to be more profound on the tribal community of Madhya Pradesh.
He will also visit an exhibition of products made by tribal self-help groups and a photo exhibition of martyrs and heroes of the freedom struggle from the tribal community of Madhya Pradesh.
The tribal community forms around 22% of Madhya Pradesh’s population. Out of 230 Assembly seats, 84 are influenced significantly by tribal voters, among which 47 seats are tribal reserved seats.
During the visit to Madhya Pradesh, Prime Minister Modi will inaugurate the redeveloped Rani Kamlapati railway station around 3 pm, the PMO said in a separate statement.
The redeveloped Rani Kamlapati railway station, named after brave and fearless Queen Kamalapati of the Gond kingdom, is the first world-class railway station in Madhya Pradesh, it said.
Redeveloped in Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode, the station has been designed as a green building with modern world-class amenities that also takes into account ease of mobility for divyangjans.
The station is also developed as a hub for integrated multi-modal transport, the PMO said.
During the event, the prime minister will dedicate to the nation multiple initiatives of the Railways in Madhya Pradesh, including the gauge converted and electrified Ujjain-Fatehabad Chandrawatiganj broad gauge section, third line in Bhopal-Barkhera section, gauge converted and electrified Mathela-Nimar Kheri broad gauge section and the electrified Guna-Gwalior section.
Prime Minister Modi will also flag off two new MEMU trains between Ujjain and Indore, the PMO said.
Meanwhile, at least 350 people, including Madhya Pradesh governor Mangubhai Patel, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and others who will come near to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his scheduled events in Bhopal on Monday are being subjected to RT-PCR tests, an official said on Sunday.
Besides the governor and the chief minister, cabinet ministers, MLAs, security personnel, officials, and other people are also undergoing the RT-PCR test to detect possible coronavirus infection, he said.
The people who will share the stage with the prime minister and those to be felicitated by him are also undergoing the COVID-19 detection test, he added.
The PM will address a convention of tribal communities in the Madhya Pradesh capital on Monday to mark the "Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas" and inaugurate the revamped Rani Kamalapati railway station, earlier known as Habibanj, besides launching various initiatives.
"A total of 101 tribals who will welcome PM Modi by standing alongside the path from the entrance to the stage of the convention at the Jamboree Maiden have already undergone tests for the detection of coronavirus," the official added.
Bhopal Chief Medical and Health Officer Prabhakar Tiwari told PTI that testing for coronavirus is underway at the Jamboree Maiden and Rani Kamalapati railway station.
"Our health teams are asking people to follow COVID-19 appropriate behaviour", he added.
(With PTI Inputs)