RAJKOT: Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan on his birth anniversary on Tuesday, saying that that he was only following his footsteps and allowing agencies to catch the corrupt, but some parties were making a hue and cry over it.

The prime minister said that JP Narayan had launched a drive to rid the nation of corruption.

PM Modi was addressing a public meeting in Jamkandorna of Gujarat's Rajkot district. Without mentioning the Congress party by name, he made fun of them "While some political leaders and parties are being investigated for corruption, agencies are being attacked by them in an effort to damage their reputation. Do you not believe that we should recoup public funds from such dishonest individuals?" "There were only 26 engineering colleges in the state, today there are 130 engineering colleges, ITIs have increased from 300 to 600 in Gujarat, Pharmacy colleges have increased from 13 to 75, and there are 36 medical colleges with 8,000 seats, this is the development state has achieved," he said when discussing Gujarat's development over the past 20 years. 

Modi recalled the state's subpar water infrastructure from earlier administrations "You haven't noticed the tears in your moms' eyes as they described how challenging it was for them to gather two pots of water and how they relied on water tankers or trains to transport water. Because of the BJP's forward-thinking policies and SAUNI programme design, you are now provided with potable water at your doorstep." The medium and small scale companies are currently producing vehicle spare parts, and Modi expressed optimism that this industry will soon be producing plane spare parts. "Rajkot is a centre of engineering industries and the diesel pump manufacturing sector," he added.

He informed the party workers of the Congress' strategy to broaden its support in rural regions by dividing voters along caste lines and urged them to put in extra effort there to avert social fragmentation.

The PM also praised the Hindu nationalist Nanaji Deshmukh.

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