Unite against move to tarnish State’s image: CM

Says Kerala first in terms of several socio-economic indices

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday made an impassioned plea for united action against attempts to tarnish Kerala’s privileged status as a model State.

In an article released here for publication, Mr. Vijayan said that participants at a recent all-party meeting, cutting across political lines, expressed the view that Kerala was the best State in the country in terms of several socio-economic indices, not to mention its law-and-order situation. “It is this beacon of hope and model for the rest of India that is being sought to be tarnished in the name of isolated incidents,” the Chief Minister said.

Against BJP’s attempts

Though he did not mention it in as many words, the Chief Minister was apparently referring to the recent political murder in the State capital and the attempts of the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership and Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to overplay the incident.

He said Kerala had a long list of firsts to be proud of, whether it was literacy, overcoming open defecation, achieving 100% electrification or providing internet access to its citizens. Kerala was the only State which made population-proportionate Budget allocation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

Allocation for SC/STs

The percentage of allocation under these heads was higher than what was allocated in any other State in the country. Kerala was the first State to come out with a transgender policy and provide employment to them. It had earmarked 16% of its Budget for women development.

Law and order

Mr. Vijayan maintained that the law-and-order situation in the State was the best in the country with the conviction rate of the Kerala Police being much higher than that of the CBI. The higher rate of crime was because of the efficiency of the police in ensuring that even the smallest crime was reported and the culprits brought to book. “The reality is that in many parts of the country, even serious crime go unreported as public faith in the police is not as high as it is in Kerala,” he said.