If UDF was in power, Vizhinjam project would have been realized in 2019, it should be named after Oommen Chandy: Congress

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The first ship from China arrived at the international seaport in Vizhinjam on Thursday. The vessel Zhenhua 15, which arrived yesterday morning around 10.45 am carrying cranes, was welcomed with a water salute. Meanwhile, Congress leaders have come forward demanding that the Vizhinjam port be named after former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy.

K Sudhakaran said Oommen Chandy was behind the realization of the port despite several attempts to scuttle the project. "The Vizhinjam port project, which was supposed to become the pillar of Kerala's development, was delayed by four years which caused heavy losses. After this, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan launched a campaign to take credit for the project. If Pinarayi Vijayan has any humanity left, the Vizhinjam project should be named after Oommen Chandy.", he said.

"If the UDF government was in power, the project would have been realized in 2019 as planned. In 2015, the UDF left power after securing all the permissions including the environmental permission, settling the court cases and completing the land acquisition. In 2019, all necessary steps for the project were completed. Pinarayi and his team, synonymous with ineffectiveness, could not go ahead with it.", he added.

"On 26th April 2016, Desabhimani newspaper was released with a huge headline '5000 Crore land fraud and sea robbery' with a cartoon of Oommen Chandy holding a money box. Oommen Chandy unequivocally declared in the assembly that the attempts to kill the scheme by raising allegations of corruption won't work. It was that determination that made the project a reality. Pinarayi Vijayan should at least apologize to Oommen Chandy. As a solution to the mistake, the Vizhinjam port project should be named after Oommen Chandy', he said.

Ramesh Chennithala also pointed out that the project was implemented only because of Oommen Chandy's determination. UDF convener MM Hasan also demanded that Oommen Chandy's name be given to the project. "The project was realized as a result of the efforts of the UDF government and Oommen Chandy's development vision and fortitude", he said