NEW DELHI, Jan 18: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday
conducted ‘bhoomi pujan’ of Ahmedabad Metro’s Phase-II and Surat Metro Rail Projects via video-conferencing in his home state of Gujarat.
The union home minister Amit Shah, Gujarat governor Acharya Devvrat, chief minister Vijay Rupani and urban affairs minister Hardeep Singh Puri were also present on the occasion.
Modi said it marked the commencement of infrastructure worth ₹17,000 crore. “Ahmedabad and Surat are receiving very important gifts today. Metro will further strengthen the connectivity in what are two major business centres of the country,” the Prime Minister said. The rapid expansion of metro network in India in recent years shows the gulf between the work done by our government and the previous ones, he further said.
Modi said work was currently underway in 27 cities across the country on more than 1,000 km of metro network. “Before 2014, only 225 km of metro line were operational while over 450 km became operational in the last six years,” he said.
Talking about Surat, PM Modi said while it is the eighth-largest city in the country by population, it is also the fourth most-rapidly developing city in the world. Surat is also the second cleanest city in India, he remarked.
On state capital Gandhinagar, he said it has undergone a major “image change” in recent years, going from a city known for government services to one which now has a significant presence of youth.
Ahmedabad Metro’s Phase-II is 28.25 km long, with two corridors. While Corridor-1 is 22.8 km long and connects Motera Stadium and Mahatma Mandir, Corridor-2 is 5.4 km long and connects Gujarat National Law University (GNLU) and Gujarat International Finance Tec (GIFT) City.
Meanwhile, Surat Metro Project is 40.35 km long and comprises two corridors as well. Corridor-1 is 21.61 km long, from Sarthana to Dream City and Corridor-2 is 18.74 km long from Bhesan to Saroli. The project will cost a total of ₹12,020 crore.
(Manas Dasgupta)
