Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Wednesday that Kerala achieved nine percent growth rate last year due to the 'good governance' of the Congress-led United Democratic Front Government.

During the past five years of UDF rule under A K Antony and Oommen Chandy, the Congress-led front provided 'good governance and saved the state from near bankruptcy', Dr Singh added.

"This is above the national average and highest in the country," he said, addressing an election meeting. Dr Singh asked the people to vote the UDF back to power and provide continuity to the development programmes started by it. "If the UDF is voted back to power, we will wipe out poverty and unemployment in Kerala," he said.

The prime minister did not make any reference to the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led opposition Left Democratic Front.

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Describing the UDF alliance as 'progressive, forward-looking and development-oriented', Dr Singh said the front had a vision of a prosperous and rapidly growing Kerala. "With the UDF government back in power, we will wipe out poverty and unemployment from this blessed land," he said.

The UDF had provided a 'stable and sound' government and enabled the state to move forward and ensure quick economic growth, the prime minister said.

"We have to eliminate poverty and provide employment to all the youth. We want to see that no one in Kerala is destitute. It is essential that the focus of any government should be on rapid social and economic development in an equitable and just manner," he said.

"Kerala is the state whose records of literacy and health are the best in the country. People from the rest of India and all over the world will come to Kerala to study this success in the future," he said.

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However, the state needed to do much more to transform its literacy into better skills, which would, in turn, ensure more productive jobs to the youth, Dr Singh said.

On the industrialisation front, the prime minister said it is essential to provide additional investments and set up new knowledge-based industries in the state to create more employment. "We need to have excellent human resources to help the hard-working and sincere people make Kerala the hub of industrialisation and economic activity in the future," he added.

Complete coverage: Kerala Assembly elections