The government, as it completes one year, is firmly on the path of development with a long-term vision, while ensuring social security for all people. The effort is to build a knowledge-based society, while improving service sectors and energising production sectors, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said.
The mandate for the LDF government for a second term is the people’s recognition for the government's popular and development-oriented vision, he said.
Presenting his government’s progress report at the end of the first year, he claimed that the LDF government could increase the farmers’ income by 50%, protect many public sector units and traditional industries and attract private investment of at least ₹10,000 crore in the industrial sector.
Four important infrastructure development projects are on the anvil. These include the Kochi-Palakkad and Kochi-Mangaluru industrial corridors, Thiruvananthapuram capital city region development scheme and SilverLine, all of which are to be taken to completion in the next five years.
National Highways development, hill highway, coastal highway, Wayanad tunnel road and South-North national waterways would be completed. The transgrid project at ₹10,000 crore will help turn Kerala a State without power shortage, he claimed
The government has pledged total poverty eradication for the State and this will be achieved through various welfare schemes for the old and infirm, disabled, free medical care through Karunya scheme, social security pension and ensuring that land, housing and drinking water is accessible to all.
Cooperative institutions will be protected and farmers and entrepreneurs will be provided loans on liberal terms through the Kerala Bank.
The government is also trying to address some inherent weaknesses in the State’s development model so that the development agenda is firmly rooted in the modern realities. The attempt is to create 40 lakh employment opportunities and this will be made possible through skill improvement programmes, industrial restructuring and modernisation of agriculture.
It is assessed that knowledge-based industries such as information technology and biotechnology and service industries like tourism are more suited for a State such as Kerala. The government intends to make largescale interventions in these sectors to revive the economy and rebuild the foundation on knowledge economy, he said.
Mr. Vijayan spoke about the thrust given to the IT industry. By 2026, 2-crore sqft of IT parks and over two lakh employment opportunities woudl be created.
Over 3,500 startups resulted in 32,000 employment opportunities during the last term of the government. The start-up policy will be pursued with vigour . An integrated industrial path is being envisaged in IT and Electronics by bringing together IT firms and young entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas, he said.
K-Fone project, which links the entire State on optic fibre network, is nearing completion.
The GAIL pipeline was completed in 2021 and by 2026, 615 CNG stations will be set up across the State. The government achieved 100% electrification and the second phase of the Idukki power project is being prepared. By 2025, about 40 % of the power requirement of the State will be met through renewable power sources, he claimed.
The government intends to up its investment in the higher education sector to usher in diversity and participation, he added.
