Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate the Kochi Metro on Saturday but what has kicked up a controversy is the exclusion of Metro man E Sreedharan from the dais. Sreedharan is not included in the list of people who will be sitting on the dais.
Sreedharan is the Principal Advisor of Delhi Metro, and was overseeing the Kochi Metro project since its inception in 2012.
The state government has written to the PMO to include the names of DMRCL principal advisor Dr. E Sreedharan as well as Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala and MLA PT Thomas who have also been excluded.
According to the PMO’s office, the following names had been approved for attending the inauguration ceremony: PM Narendra Modi, CM Pinarayi Vijayan, Union minister Venkaiah Naidu, Governor P Sathasivam, MP KV Thomas, Minister Thomas Chandy and Mayor Soumini Jain.
Among these, only the PM, CM and Naidu have been authorized to address the gathering.
The welcome address is to be given by KMRCL MD Elias George but there’s no place for him to sit on the dais.
The rest of the four dignitaries on the stage will not be addressing the gathering.
According to the letter sent by Chief Secretary Nalini Netto to the PMO, the list forwarded by the state govt recommended that 17 people were to be seated on the dais. Out of this, 10 people were to be given a chance to address the gathering. MP KV Thomas, MLA PT Thomas and KMRL Elias George were supposed to speak as per the state government's plan.
According to the state government's suggestion, those who should be on the dais include Mayor Soumini Jain, Chief Secretary Nalini Netto, MLA PT Thomas, Ministers Thomas Chandy, E Chandrasekhan, Mathew T Thomas, Ramachandran Kadannapally, Secretary of Urban Development Ministry Rajeev Guha and KMRL MD Elias George.