Shunning his scheduled arrival in a chopper, Prime Minister Narendra Modi travelled by the Delhi Metro on Sunday to inaugurate the extension of the Badarpur Line that will connect the satellite city of Faridabad to the national capital.

After the inauguration, Modi spoke on the hot topic, OROP (one rank, one pension) for retired armed forces personnel, saying that he had fulfilled his promise.

He said the cost of implementing this promise would be around ₹8,000-10,000 crore, which, according to an official release, is significantly higher than some earlier estimates.

Taking a dig at the Opposition, Modi regretted that it had become a “fashion to politicise every decision taken by the Union Government for the progress of the country”, adding that “no one should mislead the jawans and the people of the nation”.

“The country will progress not through rajneeti (politics), but through rashtraneeti (nationalist policies),” he added. 

Modi said that a significant proportion of army jawans were from Haryana, and the OROP announcement would contribute significantly to Haryana’s economy. 

Incidentally, Modi was accompanied by Union Ministers Birender Singh, Rao Inderjeet Singh (both from Haryana), Venkaiah Naidu and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation chief Mangu Singh on his Metro ride from Janpath Station to Faridabad’s Bata Chowk Station.

After the inauguration, the Prime Minister travelled back to Delhi by Metro and interacted with people who were travelling on board, the press release said.

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