Kerala - Kochi   

Make joint efforts for growth: Thomas

KOCHI: Painting a bright future of development for Kerala under the new UPA government which has six members from Kerala, K.V. Thomas, Minister of State in the Union Agriculture Ministry, has urged the LDF government to work in cooperation with the six eschewing political differences.

However, he told a news conference here on Sunday, the initial response from the State Ministers was not at all encouraging. He urged the government to take a practical approach and get things done making use of the 16 UDF MPs from the State. “Let’s sit together and discuss the State’s problems and find a joint solution,” he said.

An open mind on the part of the State government was necessary for a positive Centre-State coordination. Pointing out that the Agriculture Ministry had a large budget and that it was engaged in a variety of development-related operations, Prof. Thomas said it could do a lot for the State’s development.

He noted that the special packages for Kuttanad, Wayanad and Idukki were being handled by the Agriculture Ministry.

Pointing out that he would be handling Fisheries until a separate Union Ministry of Fisheries got going, Prof. Thomas said that he had for years been pressing the central leadership for a separate ministry for such a key subject as fisheries.

As an MP and Minister from Kochi, Prof. Thomas said his first priority would be to end the stalemate over the SmartCity project. “Let the State government spell out what exactly is the problem,” Prof. Thomas said. “We are ready to help them out.”

Prof. Thomas, who will also be in charge consumer affairs, said that there were some ‘deficiencies’ on the part of the State as regards allocation of grains under the public distribution system. Kerala’s level of grains off-take was much below the quantum allocated to it.

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