Kannur (Kerala), Apr 7 (PTI) CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Thursday parried questions on Kerala’s ambitious semi-high speed rail project SilverLine, saying the party does not interfere in the functioning of the government.
Addressing a press meet at the venue of the 23rd Party Congress of the CPI(M), Yechury said the survey for the K-Rail project was still going on and the outcome of the meeting between the prime minister and the chief minister was yet to known.
Yechury was answering questions on the SilverLine project, which has faced strong opposition from the Congress and the BJP.
He said the state government was determined to carry on with the project.
“The Central Committee and the Polit Bureau of the party do not interfere in government functioning. It’s a government project, the party does not interfere and in case any issue comes up then the party will give its opinion. The survey is going on. Let that process be over. Then we’ll know what the situation is,” Yechury said.
The party chief said the ground situation will be known once the survey is over.
“The prime minister and the chief minister have discussed the matter and the outcome is yet to come. The CM says that he was determined in carrying forward with the project does not mean that the project was approved. We don’t know what the PM will do,” he said.
He said K-Rail was not part of the political resolution of the party.
“The state government is saying that it is determined to carry on with the project…. He also said that discussions are on with the Centre. It’s a joint project,” he said.
The Silver Line aims to ease transportation between north and south regions of Kerala and reduce the travel time to less than four hours as against 12-14 hours.
The semi-high speed rail line would have 11 stations and would be built at an estimated cost of around Rs 64,000 crore. PTI RRT SMN
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