The Week India - July 29, 2018

22 THE WEEK^ • JULY 29, 2018

SPECIAL REPORT

NITIN GADKARI

cal diff erence between the Shiv Sena

and us. Balasaheb Th ackeray was a

largehearted, fi rebrand leader. He

loved me a lot. He was outspoken,

just like I am. Even now, I believe

that if the BJP and the Shiv Sena stay

together, it will be good for Mahar-

ashtra and India.

Are you doing anything towards

that?

No, and I will not. Th e work given

to me is my department, and my

energy, strength, all go into it. But, if

the party wants me to do something

small, I [will] do it. I do not inter-

fere in any state aff airs, do not get

involved with organisational matters.

I have so many departments under

me, and I have so much of work to

do that I start at 8am and fi nish by

midnight.

Will the party make you prime

minister in the near future?

Th ere is no possibility. I do not

dream of it either. I do not have the

stature. And I have got much more

than I had ever imagined or de-

served.

What does the BJP want in Kash-

mir?

Th e development of Kashmir is the

BJP’s agenda. I have given 0 60,000

crore to Kashmir, by way of roads and

tunnels. We want to take industry

to Kashmir, we want the poor boys

of Kashmir to get jobs, we want

improvement in the IT industry and

in tourism. Pakistan wants to keep

Kashmir unstable.

We will not tolerate it if people live

in India and display Pakistani fl ags.

Stay in India and we will do whatever

you want. We will live like a family,

we are one blood, one history, one

heritage. You go to the masjid, and

do namaz, we have no reservations

about that.

How do you view the opposition

unity being forged?

We are growing stronger and stronger,

therefore [there is] opposition unity.

Do you see Rahul Gandhi growing

as a leader?

My best wishes are with him. A

strong opposition is imperative to a

democracy. God willing, he should

work well.

When you became minister, you

were optimistic about waterways

for passenger and freight traffi c.

I have started work on 10 waterways.

From Varanasi to Haldia—1,680km—

work started with 0 5,400 crore World

Bank funding. We are making four

multimodal hubs. In October, I will

inaugurate the hub at Varanasi. We

have made 60 river ports. We have

launched the river traffi c control sys-

tem between Patna and Haldia. Th e

next will be Varanasi to Allahabad.

By the [time of the] Kumbh [Mela] in

2019, we will start passenger traffi c,

auto traffi c. In similar line, we have

started work in 10 rivers. [From] the

funds we got for roads, we diverted

2.5 per cent of it— 0 2,000 crore—to

waterways. My aim is to develop

7,500km of coastline and 20,000km

of inland waterways for passenger

and freight traffi c. Th is will take time,

but will happen. Th e reality can be

sampled on the Ganga very soon.

How do you see the BJP faring in

the assembly elections due later

this year?

If anyone from those states come

home, I help. Or if the party president

gives me some work there, I [will]

do [it]. But, I am confi dent that the

work done by this government under

[Prime Minister Narendra] Modi will

get us good results, making us win.

What are the qualities of Modi that

you like?

One is that he works for 18 hours. Th e

next is that he has a vision. He is a

decisive leader. He has a tremendous

feeling towards villagers, the poor

and the labourers; he has aff ection

for them. He has gone all over the