CPI(M) State Secretary MV Govindan | Photo credit: K Ragesh
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) said the “deliberate exclusion” of the Public Works Department (PWD) by the central government of PA Mohamed Riyas from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s inauguration of the NH-66 development projects in Kochi on Wednesday was “the latest episode in the Bharatiya Janata Party’s relentless persecution of the Kerala political people (BJJP)”.
CPI(M) state secretary MV Govindan told a press conference that “right-wing politics-driven discrimination” against Kerala was “very evident” in the NH-66 episode.
He said the Oommen Chandy government abandoned the project citing high cost and legal complexities of land acquisition.
Mr. Govindan said the Left Democratic Front (LDF), which came to power in Kerala in 2016, realized that NH development was essential for Kerala’s development and revived the project “abandoned by the United Democratic Front (UDF).
Mr. Govindan noted that NH-66 covers Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. “The BJP at the Center has set a cost-intensive benchmark for NH-66 in Kerala, which is not applicable to other states. NHAI has insisted that Kerala bear the cost of land acquisition and also commit to some extent to widen the highway,” he said. NHAI has signed an MoU with PWD, Kerala’s nodal agency for highway development.
Mr. Govindan said that Kerala has received ₹5,666 crore through KIIFB for a massive road infrastructure project. “The BJP at the Center has caused further pain by significantly reducing Kerala’s borrowing limit by including KIIFB loans in the state’s public debt. At the same time, the BJP has excluded NHAI’s borrowings from the national debt. The Centre’s relentless attempts to throw a spanner in Kerala’s development work have caused further financial pain, with the state spending ₹16.00 NH-00 crore on development,” he said.
Mr. Govindan said the Center would easily recover its investment share by collecting highway tolls. “In contrast, Kerala has invested in highway development to create social capital and ensure people’s development,” he said.
Mr. Govindan said the Congress had “joined hands with the BJP to disrupt” the development of NH-66 in Kannur by opposing the section passing through Keezhatoor in 2018. “Former KPCC president VM Sudheeran and then UDF leader PC George joined hands with Suresh Gopi and PK Krishnadas for BJP’s development in north Kerala.
Mr Govindan said people had “rejected BJP’s party politics” by celebrating the inauguration day alone.
Published – March 11, 2026 1:42 PM IST
