PM Modi in Varanasi LIVE: Development projects testament to 'New India's New Vision'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated two important roads, having a total length of 34 kilometres and built at a cost of Rs 1,571.95 crore, in his Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi.
He was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Shipping, Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Nitin Gadkari.
The 16.55-km-long Varanasi Ring Road Phase-I has been built at a cost of Rs 759.36 crore, while the work of four-laning and construction of 17.25 km Babatput-Varanasi road on NH-56 cost Rs 812.59 crore, an official release said.
The Babatpur Airport highway will connect the city with the airport and go on to link Jaunpur, Sultanpur and Lucknow. With a flyover at Harhua and a rail overbridge at Tarna, it will reduce the travel time from Varanasi to the airport, providing a big relief to the people of the holy city and tourists.
The Ring Road, with two rail overbridges and a flyover, will allow traffic on NH 56 (Lucknow-Varanasi), NH 233 (Azamgarh-Varanasi), NH 29 (Gorakhpur-Varanasi) and Ayodhya-Varanasi highways to bypass Varanasi, thereby reducing traffic congestion in the city. This will reduce travel time, fuel usage and pollution in the area.
The Ring Road will provide easier and more convenient access to Sarnath, an important site for Buddhist pilgrimage. These projects will also provide increased employment opportunities, development of small and medium industries and give a boost to economic development in the area.
Currently, national highway projects of total length 2833 km, costing Rs 63,885 crore are underway to link Varanasi with other places in eastern Uttar Pradesh.
Of these, 15 road projects of 1143 kilometre length are under various stages of construction. These include Varanasi-Jaunpur, Varanasi-Sultanpur, Sultanpur-Lucknow, Varanasi Ghaghra Bridge, Varanasi-Azamgarh among others.
Besides, there are seven targeted projects of 235 km costing Rs 8,265 crore. Also, 20 projects for 1455 km roads are in detailed project report stage.
PM Modi also inaugurated two sewage infrastructure projects worth Rs 425.41 crore in Varanasi and laid the foundation stone for another project worth Rs 72.91 crore for Ramnagar.
Among the projects inaugurated, the first is a 140 million litres per day (MLD) sewage treatment plant (STP) at Dinapur built at a cost of Rs 235.53 crore. The project includes 10 years of operation and maintenance agreement.
The second project includes three sewage pumping stations at Chaukaghat (140 MLD), Phulwaria (7.6 MLD) and Saraiya (3.7 MLD). The total cost for these three pumping stations is Rs 34.01 crore.
Another project is the construction of a 28-km-long relieving trunk sewer,rising mains and interceptor sewers along Varuna and Assi at a cost of Rs 155.87 crore.
The prime minister also laid the foundation stone for sewerage management scheme for Ramnagar which is expected to cost Rs 72.91 crore. This will include a 10 MLD STP and intercepting and diverting four drains.
These project along with two other ongoing projects of 120 MLD at Goitha and 50 MLD STP at Ramana will take the sewage treatment capacity in the city to 412 MLD, which will be adequate for the sewage treatment requirements till year 2035.
This will prevent pollution of river Ganga from drains in Ramnagar, an official release said.
Earlier in the day, PM Modi inaugurated the first-multi modal terminal on the Ganga river as part of the Centre's Jal Marg Vikas Project which aims to develop the stretch of the river between Varanasi and Haldia for navigation of large vessels weighing up to 1,500 to 2,000 tonnes. The objective of the project is to promote inland waterways The objective of the project is to promote inland waterways as a cheap and environment-friendly means of transportation, especially for cargo movement. The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) is the project implementing agency.
PM Modi also received the large container vessel belonging to PepsiCo, named MV Rabindranath Tagore, travelled for the first time on inland waterways NW-1 Ganga at the newly developed Multi-modal Terminal. The vessel is transporting as many as 16 containers, which is equivalent to 16 truckloads of food and snacks through the Ganga river.
Later the day, PM Modi will inaugurate two major national highways and an inland waterways project in Varanasi today. With a combined length of 34 km, the two roads have been laid at a cost of Rs 1,571.95 crore.
The 16.55-km Varanasi Ring Road Phase-I has been completed at a cost of Rs 759.36 crore, while the four-laning and construction of 17.25-km-long Babatpur-Varanasi Road on NH-56 has cost Rs 812.59 crore, read a statement from the PM's office.
The Babatpur Airport Highway will link Varanasi to the airport and go on to link Jaunpur, Sultanpur and Lucknow. With the flyover at Harhua and a road over bridge (ROB) at Tarna, the new road plan will reduce travel time from Varanasi to the airport, providing relief to the locals and tourists coming here, the statement said.
The Ring Road, with two ROBs and a flyover, is expected to reduce traffic, fuel usage and pollution on NH 56 (Lucknow-Varanasi), NH 233 (Azamgarh-Varanasi), NH 29 (Gorakhpur-Varanasi) and Ayodhya–Varanasi highway, the statement said.
Further the ring road is expected to provide smooth road access to Sarnath, a renowned Buddhist pilgrimage site.
National Waterway-1 (Haldia-Varanasi stretch) is being developed with technical assistance and investment support from the World Bank. The total estimated cost of the project is Rs 5,369.18 crore, which will be shared between the Government of India and the World Bank on a 50:50 ratio.
The project entails construction of three multi-modal terminals (Varanasi, Sahibganj and Haldia), two inter-modal terminals, five roll-on-roll-off (Ro-Ro) terminal pairs, new navigation lock at Farakka, assured depth dredging, integrated vessel repair and maintenance facility, differential global positioning system (DGPS), river information system (RIS), river training and conservancy works.
Operation, management and further development of the terminal is proposed to be entrusted to an operator on public-private partnership model and selection of the operator through an international competitive bidding is at an advanced stage and is expected to be completed by December, an official statement said.
The multi-modal terminal project and proposed freight village in Varanasi are expected to generate 500 direct employment and more than 2,000 indirect employment opportunities.
HERE ARE THE HIGHLIGHTS
05:45 PM: Taking a dig at previous governments, PM Modi said that people will only stand for development-based governance, not vote-bank based-governance.
05:45 PM: The new projects will open abundant employment opportunities for youth, says Prime Minister Narendra Modi
05:35 PM: Previous governments did not do anything to develop water transport system in the nation, says Prime Minister Narendra Modi
05:26 PM: Various projects including Babatpur-Varanasi Road, Varanasi Ring Road Phase-I project, sewage management project at Ramnagar have been inaugurated today, says Prime Minister Narendra Modi
05:22 PM: Today is a historic day not only for the people of Varanasi but also for the entire nation, says Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi.
05:10 PM: PM Modi inaugurates 2 sewage infra projects worth Rs 425.41 cr in Varanasi; lays foundation stone for Rs 72.91 cr project for Ramnagar.
5:00 PM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inuagurates Babatpur-Varanasi Road and Varanasi Ring Road Phase-I project. The 16.55-km Varanasi Ring Road Phase-I has been completed at a cost of Rs 759.36 crore, while the four-laning and construction of 17.25-km-long Babatpur-Varanasi Road on NH-56 has cost Rs 812.59 crore.
03:45 PM: PM Modi dedicates Multi-Modal terminal to nation. The multi-modal terminal project and proposed freight village in Varanasi are expected to generate 500 direct employment and more than 2,000 indirect employment opportunities.PM Modi also received the large container vessel travelled for the first time on inland waterways NW-1 Ganga at the newly developed Multi-modal Terminal. The container vessel belonging to PepsiCo, named MV Rabindranath Tagore is transporting as many as 16 containers, which is equivalent to 16 truckloads of food and snacks through the Ganga river.
03:30 PM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives in Varanasi. PM Modi will dedicate to the nation , two important national highways in Varanasi, having a total length of 34 kilometres anc constructed at a cost of Rs 1571.95 crore today.
