BEFORE 2014, the country was known for importing urea, and the shortage of fertilisers used to make headlines, but the situation has improved now, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday as he inaugurated a fertiliser plant here. Addressing a rally, Modi said his Government stopped misuse of urea, and issued soil health cards to farmers so that they know which type of fertiliser is needed. The Prime Minister said his Government also took steps to hike urea production by reviving closed fertiliser plants. He said the amount of sugarcane dues paid by the Yogi Government in four and a half years is more than the total sum paid by the previous Governments in 10 years. Modi was speaking after inaugurating three mega projects, including an AIIMS and the fertiliser plant, in Gorakhpur. Taking a swipe at the Samajwadi Party ahead of Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday equated “red cap” with “red alert” for the State.

 

“Today, the entire UP very well knows that those wearing red caps are concerned about red beacon (‘laal batti’) and they are not bothered about your pain and sorrows.” “The red cap people want power to commit scams, fill their coffers, indulge in illegal grabbing (of resources) and to give complete freedom to the mafia,” he said. The other project he inaugurated is a Regional Medical Research Centre of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The three big-ticket projects are worth over Rs 9,600 crore. The newly built fertiliser plant will be operated by the Hindustan Urvarak Rasayan Limited (HURL).

 

The Gorakhpur AIIMS, built at a cost of Rs 1,011 crore, will benefit not only the people of eastern Uttar Pradesh but also a huge population of Bihar, Jharkhand and Nepal with its world-class health facilities, officials said. Similarly, the regional medical research centre set up at a cost of Rs 36 crore will facilitate the test and research of vector-borne diseases, they added. The high-tech lab will decrease the dependency of the area on big cities for tests related to vector-borne diseases.