THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The government, which is planning to adopt Metroman E Sreedharan's semi-high-speed route as an alternative to the SilverLine, is calculating to make gains in the Lok Sabha elections by making development politics a topic of discussion. The slogan of development was one of the main factors that helped the Pinarayi government achieve continuance of rule.

Sreedharan's semi-high-speed project does not require much land acquisition. It mainly consists of elevated rail lines and underground tunnels. Therefore, the government is expecting that there will not be much opposition from the people. The LDF thus believes that it will be able to turn development into votes. This is what is troubling the UDF, which won 19 out of 20 seats in the last Lok Sabha election. The Congress is trying to oppose the project by alleging that the BJP and CPM have entered a deal to topple the Congress. Congress leaders came out yesterday accusing BJP-CPM of reaching a deal. The Congress claims that the move made by keeping KV Thomas upfront is questionable.

After the advent of Vande Bharat, the government was silent about the SilverLine project. However, the huge reception that Vande Bharat received in Kerala is an indication that the majority of people are in favor of high-speed trains. This is what gives the government courage to go ahead with Sreedharan's idea.