Union minister Nitin Gadkari, who applied his nomination from Nagpur Lok Sabha constituency today, took credit for allowing Congress general secretary for UP East Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s Ganga yatra.
“If I had not made Allahabad-Varanasi waterway, how could she [Priyanaka Gandhi Vadra] have travelled? She also drank Ganga water, could she have done the same under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government?” Gadkari asked.
The National Waterway 1 or Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system links Haldia (Sagar) to Prayagraj across the Ganges, Bhagirathi and Hooghly river systems. It should be noted that the 1,620 km long waterway is the longest waterway in India.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, on March 18, organised a three-day poll campaign in Lucknow before the Lok Sabha elections with her Ganga yatra. Her movement started from her great grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru’s birthplace Prayagraj and ended in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary constituency Varanasi on March 20.
Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Shipping and Water Resources, Nitin Gadkari gave a word that by March 2020, River Ganga will be 100 per cent clean. He also said, adding that he is most proud of the staggering Rs 26,000 crore Aviral Ganga project.
Nitin Gadkari said that he will be sending a complete project report (DPR) of Rs 12,000 crore to World Bank for joining Delhi-Prayagraj through waters.
This will also cut down too much of travel time from Delhi to Bangladesh via waterways, Nitin Gadkari assured.
Nitin Gadkari will be fielded to contest against Nana Patole of Congress. The BJP earlier listed Nitin Gadkari’s name on March 21 in its first batch for Lok Sabha 2019 election.