PM Modi's Kochi roadshow sparks chaos with traffic, market hit
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Kochi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the roadshow in the city on Tuesday, and with thousands of BJP workers gathered to witness the event, traffic restrictions and security arrangements in place, schools closed and markets hit, life in the city was thrown into disarray.
PM Modi arrived in Kochi on Tuesday as part of his two-day visit to the state.
He arrived at the Cochin International Airport from Andhra Pradesh around 6.30 p.m. and was received by Governor Arif Mohammed Khan and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on the tarmac.
The PM then took a chopper ride to the Naval Base airport from where he drove down to the Maharaja’s College ground, the starting point of the roadshow.
Besides the larger traffic regulations enforced in the city during the VVIP movement, vehicular movement from DCC Junction, Jos Junction, Woodlands Junction, Rama Varma Club Junction, and BTH Junction to Hospital Road and from High Court Junction to Menaka was completely banned from 4.15 p.m. ahead of the roadshow, reports The Hindu.
There was a significant drop in both customers and staff in shops as people largely avoided coming to the city to avoid getting caught in the traffic, which in turn affected the sales.
“It is likely to be the same on Wednesday as well,” said P.A. Sageer, president, Broadway Shop Owners Association, as quoted by The Hindu.
Schools ended classes in the afternoon to avoid the possibility of students getting caught in traffic. However, the functioning of hotels was hardly affected by the restrictions.
The Prime Minister will visit the Sree Krishna temple, Guruvayur in Thrissur on Wednesday morning. He would also attend the wedding of the daughter of actor-turned-BJP leader Suresh Gopi, the party’s potential candidate from Thrissur Lok Sabha seat.
The Prime Minister will then head to Sree Ramaswami Temple at Thriprayar in the district, one of the prominent Ram temples in Kerala.
He would then address a gathering of the in-charges of the party’s shakti kendra. Apart from party-related events, Modi would also inaugurate three major infrastructure projects worth over Rs 4,000 crore at the Cochin shipyard.
PM Modi had held a roadshow on January 3 in Thrissur. While the BJP has not yet secured a Lok Sabha seat in Kerala, it is the first party to initiate a campaign with Modi leading roadshows and addressing grassroots-level workers.
