With a BJP government at the Centre, Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel today made a strong push for quick sanction for pending state projects and put up some new demands, including that Statue of Unity, a pet project of Narendra Modi, be declared a national project.
Patel, a protege of Prime Minister Modi whom she had met yesterday, held a series of meetings with union ministers, including Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari and Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti regarding Gujarat projects.
In her meeting with Bharti, she sought the Centre's timely intervention in granting permission to raising of the height of the Sardar Sarovar dam, an issue which had found mention in Modi's campaign after the then UPA government rejected the permission.
She urged Jaitley that the Statue of Unity, to be built on Narmada river, be considered a "national project" and the Centre should provide financial assistance for its speedy completion, an official statement said.
"She had yesterday sought Modi's intervention in resolving pending issues lying with different ministries and departments in the UPA regime," it said.
Patel took up the issue of upgradation of state highways, including coastal highways, to national highways in her meeting with Gadkari.
Gujarat has the country's longest coastline of 1,600 km, and major ports like Kandla, Mundra, Pipavav and about 40 medium and minor ports are active along it.
"These ports are strategically located and serve the huge hinterland of northern and central India. Gujarat has become the gateway of global business and trade," she said, urging him to consider the demand in the "national interest".
