Tourism, trade get most benefit from better connectivity: PM Modi

PM Modi, who is on a visit to Kerala, on Thursday laid the foundation stone and inaugurated various projects of Kochi Metro and Indian Railways worth over Rs 4,500 crore.

Speaking at the programme, Prime Minister said, "Modern infrastructure has a big role in this roadmap of developed India. Tourism and trade get the most benefit from modern and better connectivity. The development of tourism will help in the development of the country. "

"Today there is a festive mood of Onam across Kerala. On this occasion of joy, Kerala has been gifted with connectivity projects worth more than Rs 4,600 crore. The speciality of Kerala is that care and concern are part of the social life here," he stated.

PM Modi said the Centre is completely transforming Indian Railways. He said railway stations in the country are now being developed like airports.

Refering to the expansion of metro services, Prime Minister said in the last eight years, the central government has continuously worked to make the metro rail the most prominent mode of urban transport "The central government has expanded the metro services to other major cities apart from the state capitals," he said.

He further said, "The first metro in our country ran about 40 years ago. In the next 30 years, the country covered even less than 250 km metro network. In the last eight years, 500 kms of Metro has been built in the country. Work is underway on more than 1,000 km metro route."

The Phase I extension of the Kochi Metro Rail Project has been done from Petta to SN junction.

According to Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the total cost of the project is over Rs 700 crore. Kochi Metro Rail project will be one of the most sustainable metro projects in the country with nearly 55 per cent of its energy needs being met by solar power.

Prime Minister today also laid the foundation stone for the Phase -II stretch of the Kochi Metro rail project from JLN stadium to Infopark, having a length of 11.2 kilometre and covering 11 stations. The total estimated cost of this project is around Rs 1,950 crore.

The proposed Phase II corridor of the Kochi Metro Rail Project is aimed at catering to the growing transportation needs of Kochi City and is planned in such a way that it connects the District Headquarters, Special Economic Zone and IT Hub of the city with the existing metro rail network, said PMO statement.

On completion, the combined Phase I and Phase II metro network will link the major residential and commercial hubs in the city with major transit hubs such as railway stations and bus stands, thus reinforcing the concept of multi-modal integration and last-mile connectivity.

PM Modi inaugurated the doubling of the Kuruppanthara-Kottayam-Chingavanam rail section, completed at a cost of nearly Rs 750 crore. With this, the entire stretch from Thiruvananthapuram to Mangaluru is fully doubled now, promising faster and seamless connectivity.

Significantly, lakhs of devotees bound for Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa Shrine can conveniently alight at Kottayam or Chengannur railway station in the doubled section and proceed by road to Pamba.He also dedicated to the nation the newly electrified rail section between Kollam - Punalur.

The laying of the foundation stone for the redevelopment of three Railway stations in Kerala - Ernakulam Junction, Ernakulam Town and Kollam has also been done by PM Modi today.

The total estimated cost of these station redevelopment projects is around Rs 1,050 crore. These railway stations will be equipped with state-of-the-art amenities and world-class facilities such as dedicated arrival/departure corridors, skywalks, solar panels, sewage treatment plants, energy-efficient lighting, rain-water harvesting and intermodal transport facilities. (ANI)