In a huge embarrassment to the Chhattisgarh Government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi put off his plan to address a public rally in Naya Raipur on Saturday as a massive pandal erected for the function caved in, top officials said on Friday. More than 42 persons mostly the labourers engaged in a 50x100 metres size pandal construction and a few police personnel at the site, were injured as the overweight structure collapsed on them due to a mild storm. The injured were rushed to Government and private hospitals and at least four of them were reported to be very critical.
Sources said the red-faced Government will probe into the matter how a minor storm brought down a massive structure. Reports said that pandals for PM's rally were constructed against the standard parameters set for VVIP function. The State Government had put its all resources for a successful rally of PM Modi in Naya Raipur and Chief Minister Raman Singh had himself held a series of meetings with senior officials during past one week to make the trip a grand success.
"A major portion of the Pandal in Naya Raipur on Friday afternoon collapsed due to a storm, it was impossible to reconstruct the pandal in a very short period, so the rally at Naya Raipur has been put off indefinitely after consultations with the PMO'', the CM, who was visibly looking dejected, told the reporters in Naya Raipur after inspecting the rally site. He added, "The trip of the Prime Minister to Dantewada is on."
In his maiden visit to Chhattisgarh as Prime Minister, Modi will witness a function in Dantewada for Rs. 24,000 cr investment in sprawling Bastar region that include a ultra-mega steel plant and the second phase of Rowghat-Jagdalpur 140 km railway line. The BJP state unit has appealed to party cadres late on Friday not to travel to Raipur on Saturday for PM's rally.