In his first press conference after taking over as chief minister of Gujarat for the second time, Narendra Modi on Wednesday asked the media to refrain from "dividing" the state on the lines of caste and religion.
"It is my fervent appeal to the media to put a halt to the campaign of dividing the five crore people of Gujarat in minorities or majorities," he said in Gandhinagar.
"When I talk about five crore Gujaratis, it includes everyone," he said.
Modi also charged the media with depicting the state as communal.
Asserting that his government will make Gujarat a "peaceful, prosperous and powerful state" where people live without fear, he outlined a development agenda for the state.
Modi focussed on infrastructure development and identified education, energy, and irrigation as the areas to trigger human resource development, industrial growth, and agricultural prosperity.
He said the Planning Commission expected the growth rate of Gujarat to stay at two per cent more than the national average of eight.
"With a wide scope of agricultural growth, Gujarat has the potential to achieve this target," he said.