Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Andhra Pradesh and Kerala on Tuesday (January 16) and Wednesday (January 17). The visits will include the inauguration of a few projects in both states as well as temple visits. According to a Press Information Bureau release, Modi will perform pooja and darshan at Veerabhadra Temple in Lepakshi, Andhra Pradesh around 1.30 pm. By 3.30 pm, the Prime Minister will reach Palasamudram, Sri Sathya Sai District and inaugurate the new campus of National Academy of Customs, Indirect Taxes & Narcotics (NACIN).
The PM will later reach Kochi, where he will hold a road show. Modi is scheduled to conduct a 1.3 km roadshow from Maharaja's College ground to the Ernakulam Guest House. The road show, which is said to expect a turnout of 50,000 BJP workers, will also reportedly include cultural performances and musical events. The district administration has announced traffic restrictions within the city on account of the PM’s visit.
On January 17, at around 7.30 am, he will “perform pooja and darshan at Guruvayur Temple in Kerala. He will also perform pooja and darshan at Thriprayar Shree Ramaswami Temple at around 10.30 am,” PIB said. Modi is also expected to attend the wedding of former BJP MP and actor Suresh Gopi’s daughter’s wedding at the Guruvayur temple.
Mathrubhumi reported that the PM is likely to perform 'thulabharam' with lotus flowers at the Guruvayur temple. He had performed a similar ‘thulabharam' during his 2019 visit to the temple. It was also reported that 3,000 cops are on duty as part of security protocol for Modi's temple visits.
PIB said that on the second day of his Kerala visit, Modi will inaugurate three infrastructure projects in Kochi worth more than Rs 4,000 crore — the New Dry Dock (NDD) at Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL); the International Ship Repair Facility (ISRF) of CSL; and LPG Import Terminal of Indian Oil Corporation Limited at Puthuvypeen, Kochi.
This is the Prime Minister’s second visit to Kerala in two weeks. In early January, Modi had addressed thousands of women at a women's rally in Thekkinkadu ground, Thrissur. Earlier, IANS had reported that Modi is expected to visit the state once in January and twice in February ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. The news agency had said that the projects that will be inaugurated will include a National Highway and a project at the Kochi Metro.