PM sounds poll bugle in election-bound Haryana

Sounding a poll budge in the poll-bound Haryana, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday not only presented his government's report card of 100 days in government but also praised the Manohar Lal Khattar-led government in the state for fighting corruption and nepotism.

Appealing to the public to help conserve water by adopting rainwater harvesting technique, Modi in his address here, third in recent years, promised to double the income of the farmers by 2022.

"In the last five years, the game of corruption on the land of farmers in Haryana has also stopped. On the basis of such an excellent track record of five years, the whole of Haryana has stood in favour of the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) today," said Modi, who ahead of addressing the rally, inaugurated and laid foundation stones of developmental projects worth Rs 2,000 crore.

He thanked the people of the state for making the BJP win all 10 parliamentary seats in the general elections.

He said several measures have been taken by the state in the interest of the farmers and the poor.

Praising Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, he said the state has been declared ODF and kerosene free and is contributing significantly to the country's growth.

He said that families in Haryana have become 'manohar' (charming) today, a reference made to the Chief Minister's name.

PM's rally also marked the culmination of 22-day and 3,000-km long Khattar's 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra'.

This was Modi's first visit to Haryana after getting elected to power for the second term in May this year.

BJP's state election-in-charge and Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and his cabinet colleagues belonging to the state attended the Modi's 'Vijay Sanklap' rally.

The district administration and the party had made special arrangements to make Modi's rally eco-friendly.

The administration had appealed to the public not to use the plastic mineral water bottles at the rally venue.

The administration had installed around 10,000 earthen pots for the people to quench their thirst.

While the main opposition -- the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) -- has been reduced to a minority as most of its legislators and leaders have joined the BJP, infighting continues to dog the Congress, which ruled the state for two consecutive terms till 2014.

Khattar's slogan 'Mission 75' got louder after the party's stellar performance in the Lok Sabha elections, winning all 10 seats, a first in state's electoral history.