Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday urged citizens to work with dedication and unity to tackle global challenges arising out of the conflict in West Asia, and said the government prioritised securing India's interests.
Addressing a gathering at the inauguration of the Noida International Airport in Jewar, Modi said: "Friends, the positive effort of everybody is a must to make Viksit Bharat a reality. It is necessary that 140 crore people of this country work hard and face the international crisis together."
The first phase of the greenfield airport project, covering more than 1,300 hectares, includes one runway and one terminal building, with an annual passenger handling capacity of 12 million.
The project, initiated in 2019 under a public-private partnership model by the Uttar Pradesh government, was awarded to Switzerland-based Zurich Airport International AG. The construction was carried out by its local subsidiary, Yamuna International Airport Pvt Ltd.
Modi had laid the foundation stone of the airport's first phase in 2021 and inaugurated it on Saturday. Once complete, the airport will be the largest in the country.
The Prime Minister used the inauguration ceremony in the Gautam Buddh Nagar district to urge political parties to desist from making unfounded claims and creating fear psychosis.
"I had spoken in detail in Parliament on how to deal with the crisis arising out of the ongoing war. Yesterday, I had a detailed positive discussion with the chief ministers. We have to face this crisis peacefully and patiently. This crisis has created problems across the world. We have to be concerned about our country,” Modi said.
“I earnestly appeal to the political parties to avoid making statements that are harmful to the country. The policy and strategy adopted by the Centre are in the interest of India and Indians. Those making negative statements may score some brownie points politically, but the countrymen will never pardon them for their tendency to harm the nation,” he added.
Opposition parties have pilloried the Modi government for its perceived silence on the West Asia crisis and its alleged inability to handle the fuel crisis stemming from it.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said the country's international policy was “compromised because the PM himself was compromised. Modi does what America and Israel want him to do”.
“They will raise the prices of petrol, diesel and LPG after the (Assembly) elections (in Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry). Modi government neither has a direction nor a strategy, they have lip service only,” Rahul posted on X.
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav has accused the Modi government of taking the country back to "the medieval time when wood was used as fuel".
"His government made people stand in queues several times. The people are again in queue for LPG and petrol-diesel,” he said.
Ridiculing the Centre for reducing excise duty on petrol and diesel by ₹10 per litre, Bengal chief minister and Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee has said: "It’s like increasing the price of a saree by ₹1,000 and offering a discount of ₹400 on it."
Modi said the Opposition parties had reacted in the same way during the Covid-19 pandemic but failed to derive any political mileage from it.
“Some people had spread rumours during the Corona crisis also. They lied about the vaccine so that the job of the government would become difficult and the country would be harmed. But what happened? The people rejected such a kind of politics in elections. I am confident that all the political parties will learn a lesson from this and support the united effort of the country,” he said.
