The staff at Government Guest House at Thycaud here are upbeat about the recent visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This was the first time that a Prime Minister was staying here during an official visit. Former Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Indra Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpeyi, and Manmohan Singh had preferred to stay at Raj Bhavan or hotels.
It was circumstances that resulted in arrangements being made for Mr. Modi’s stay here. On December 19, the Prime Minister, within 45 minutes, was scheduled to attend a meeting led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, a meeting with representatives of fishermen affected by Cyclone Ockhi, a delegation of bishops, and a meeting of over 45 BJP national and and State leaders. Arrangements also needed to be made for the Prime Minister to relax for 10 minutes during his one-day visit.
The government decided that the only venue where all these could be possible was the guest house. But then arose the question - Would the facility be ready within 24 hours to host all these events in way befitting the Prime Minister? After the Protocol and Tourist departments agreed on it, a decision was taken. Within 24 hours, the guest house was ready to welcome Mr. Modi, who expressed satisfaction at the arrangements.
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The Prime Minister also posed for a photograph with the staff and expressed his thanks.