(With inputs from Agencies)

PM Modi launches Ro-Ro ferry service in Gujarat

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday charged that the Congress-led UPA government had been hostile to him and deliberately stalled development projects in Gujarat while he'd been the chief minister."When I was serving as CM, I faced hostility from the then Central government. Efforts were made to stall industries and the state's growth," PM Modi said at a public meeting during his third visit this month to the poll-bound state.This state of affairs had altered once people had voted him to power in 2014, the Prime Minister said, and he'd ensured that all infrastructure and development projects earmarked for Gujarat were sanctioned and implemented right away."Over the last three years we have changed that and given importance to the development of Gujarat," he said.PM Modi was addressing BJP workers at a Gujarat Gaurav rally, moments after inaugurating a slew of development projects for the state, including the Rs 612 crore Ghogha-Dahej Ro-Ro ferry service . He'd laid the foundation stone for the project in 2012 during his tenure as CM and called it his "dream project"."This programme may be for a ferry between Ghogha and Dahej but this programme is of vital importance for the entire nation. Ferry service is a first of sorts, not only in India but also in southeast Asia. Its a dream come true for people of Gujarat," he said.The Ro-Ro (Roll on, Roll off) ferry service will bridge the 360 km distance between Ghogha and Dahej, reducing it to 30 km by sea. This will save fuel, clear congested roads and bring down travel time from 7-8 hours to just one hour.The Prime Minister alleged that the Union government had tried to shelve the Ro-Ro ferry service, making "structural errors" which had set the project back by years.He is scheduled to travel to Vadodara, where he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stones for eight different projects worth over Rs 1,140 crore. The prime minister had visited Gujarat on Monday this week when he addressed BJP workers at a rally in Gandhinagar Prior to that, Modi had visited his home town Vadnagar on October 8 and also inaugurated and laid foundation stones of various projects in Rajkot, Vadnagar, Gandhinagar, and Bharuch. He has been frequently visiting the state, which goes to polls in December this year.The Election Commission had on October 12 announced that polling for the assembly elections in Himachal Pradesh will take place on November 9, but held off announcing the Gujarat schedule, only saying the polling in the western state would be held before December 18.Immediately thereafter, the Congress had alleged that the government put "pressure" on the poll panel to "delay" the announcement of Gujarat elections to enable the prime minister to act as a "false santa claus" and offer sops and use "jumlas" (rhetoric).