Foundation stones laid for 44.22-km of Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway
The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has inaugurated, dedicated to the nation and laid the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth over Rs.32,000 crores in Jammu on 20 Feb 2024.
The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of multiple projects for upgrading the infrastructure in several higher educational institutes across the country. These projects include the construction of the permanent campus of Sindhu Central University and IIIT Raichur; the construction of academic block, hostel, faculty quarter etc in IIT Bombay; construction of Hostel and Staff Quarter in IIT Gandhinagar, construction of Girls’ hostel in BHU, among others.
In a significant step towards upgrading and developing education and skilling infrastructure across the country, the Prime Minister inaugurated, dedicated to the nation and laid the foundation stone of several projects worth about Rs.13,375 crores.
The Prime Minister dedicated to the nation permanent campus of IIT Bhilai, IIT Tirupati, IISER Tirupati, IIITDM Kurnool; academic and residential complex in IIT Patna and IIT Ropar; two permanent campuses of Central Sanskrit University – at Devprayag (Uttarakhand) and Agartala (Tripura). The Prime Minister inaugurated permanent campuses of IIM Visakhapatnam, IIM Jammu and IIM Bodh Gaya. He also inaugurated Indian Institute of Skills (IIS) – a pioneer skill training institute on advanced technologies in Kanpur.
He inaugurated and dedicated to the nation, improved infrastructure like hostels, academic blocs, administrative buildings, libraries, auditoriums etc in multiple higher educational institutes across the country like IIT Jammu, NIT Delhi, IIT Kharagpur, NIT Durgapur, IISER Behrampur, NIT Arunachal Pradesh, IIIT Lucknow, IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, Central University of Kerala Kasaragod, among others.
AIIMS Jammu
In a step that will provide comprehensive, quality and holistic tertiary care health services to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the Prime Minister inaugurated All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Vijaypur (Samba), Jammu. The institute’s foundational stone was also laid by the Prime Minister in February 2019.
Established at a cost of over Rs.1,660 crore and in an area spanning over 227 acres, the hospital is equipped with facilities like 720 beds, Medical College with 125 seats, Nursing College with 60 seats, AYUSH Block with 30 beds, residential accommodation for faculty and staff, hostel accommodation for UG and PG students, Night Shelter, Guest House, Auditorium, Shopping Complex etc.
Rail Projects
The Prime Minister dedicated to the nation various rail projects in Jammu & Kashmir including the new rail line between Banihal-Khari-Sumber-Sangaldan (48-km) and the newly electrified Baramulla-Srinagar-Banihal-Sangaldan section (185.66-km). The Prime Minister also flagged off the first Electric Train in the valley and also train service between Sangaldan station & Baramulla station.
The commissioning of the Banihal-Khari-Sumber-Sangaldan section is significant as it features the usage of Ballast Less Track (BLT) all along the route providing a better riding experience to the passengers. Also, India’s longest transportation tunnel T-50 (12.77-km) lies in this portion between Khari-Sumber. The rail projects will improve connectivity, ensure environmental sustainability and boost the overall economic development of the region.
Jammu Airport’s New Terminal Building
The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for a new terminal building at Jammu Airport. To be spread over a 40,000 sqm area, the new terminal building will be equipped with modern facilities catering to about 2,000 passengers during peak hours. The new terminal building will be environment friendly and will be built such that it showcases the local culture of the region. It will strengthen air connectivity, boost tourism and trade and accelerate economic growth of the region.
Road Projects
During the programme, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of important road projects including two packages (44.22-km) of Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway connecting Jammu to Katra; Phase two for four-laning of Srinagar Ring Road; five packages for upgrading the 161-km long Srinagar-Baramulla-Uri stretch of NH-01; and the construction of Kulgam Bypass & Pulwama bypass on NH-444.
The two packages of the Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway, once completed will facilitate the visit of pilgrims to the holy shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi, and will also boost economic development in the region; Phase two for four-laning of Srinagar Ring Road involves upgrading the existing Sumbal-Wayul NH-1. This brownfield project of length 24.7-km, will reduce the traffic congestion in and around Srinagar city. It will improve connectivity to popular tourist destinations like Manasbal Lake and Kheer Bhawani Temple, and also reduce travel time to Leh, Ladakh; The project for the upgradation of 161-km long Srinagar-Baramulla-Uri stretch of NH-01, is of strategic importance. It will also boost the economic development of Baramulla & Uri; Kulgam Bypass & Pulwama bypass on NH-444 connecting Qazigund – Kulgam – Shopian – Pulwama – Badgam – Srinagar will also boost road infrastructure in the region.
CUF Petroleum depot
The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for a project to develop CUF (Common User Facility) Petroleum depot at Jammu. The state-of-the-art fully automated depot which will be developed at a cost of about Rs.677 crore, will have a storage capacity of about 100,000 KL for storing Motor Spirit (MS), High Speed Diesel (HSD), Superior Kerosene Oil (SKO), Aviation Turbine fuel (ATF), Ethanol, Biodiesel and winter grade HSD.
Other projects
The Prime Minister also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of several development projects worth more than Rs.3,150 crores for strengthening the civic infrastructure and provisioning of public facilities across Jammu and Kashmir.
The inaugurated projects include road projects & bridges; grid stations, receiving stations transmission line Projects; Common Effluent Treatment Plants and Sewage Treatment Plants; Several Degree College buildings; Intelligent Traffic Management system in Srinagar city; Modern Narwal Fruit Mandi; Drug Testing Laboratory at Kathua; and Transit accommodation – 224 flats at Ganderbal and Kupwara.
The projects whose foundation stones are being laid include development of five new Industrial Estates across Jammu and Kashmir; the Data Centre / Disaster Recovery Centre for Integrated Command and Control Centre of Jammu Smart City; Up-gradation of Transport Nagar at Parimpora Srinagar; Up-gradation of 62 road projects and 42 bridges and project for development of transit accommodation – 2816 flats at nine locations in districts Anantnag, Kulgam, Kupwara, Shopian & Pulwama, among others. fiinews.com