This election is about the country's future, Nitin Gadkari says in Himachal

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday said "this election is not about the future of the Congress and the BJP but it is about the future of the country and its people".

Addressing an election meeting at Anni in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh, he said the public has to decide which party and which leader can work for their future.

"The Congress was given the opportunity to run the government for 60 years. They only gave the slogan of 'garibi hatao' (eradicate poverty) but they did not do any work on the ground. The country has two main sectors: agriculture and industry, which cannot function without water, electricity and communication means.

"In 60 years, the Congress did not do any development in the agriculture sector. People migrated to cities because there was unemployment, hunger and lack of basic facilities in villages. Therefore, Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government decided that industries would have to be developed at the rural level, for which the primary task would be to improve water, electricity, roads and communication facilities," the Union Minister said.

Narrating his experience, Nitin Gadkari said, as a minister in the Maharashtra government, he built the Mumbai-Pune Expressway due to which former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee gave him the opportunity to prepare the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana.

"Under this scheme, roads were built in 4.50 lakh villages out of 6.50 lakh villages in the country. Tourism in Himachal depends on road infrastructure, so we expanded roads on a large scale. Today, tourism has increased in Himachal, the main reason for which is the strengthening of road routes," he said.

Polling for the four Lok Sabha seats in Himachal Pradesh -- Shimla (reserved), Kangra, Mandi and Hamirpur -- along with bypoll for six Assembly seats is scheduled for June 1.