VADODARA, September 9: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated, dedicated to the nation and laid the foundation stones for development projects worth more than ₹35,000 crore in Vadodara, including the remaining sections of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor, railway capacity works, National Highway projects and urban infrastructure.
A major part of the programme was the commissioning of three sections of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor covering 326 route kilometres and developed at a cost of more than ₹20,700 crore.
The sections comprise New Sanand (N)-New Makarpura, New Umbergaon-New Saphale and New Saphale-New JNPT.
With the commissioning of these sections, the entire Western Dedicated Freight Corridor has become operational. The government said the Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridor network, spanning around 2,800 km, is now operational.
The new freight corridor connectivity to Jawaharlal Nehru Port is expected to improve movement of export-import cargo between industrial centres and the port while reducing pressure on the existing railway network.
Modi also flagged off freight train services from New Sanand (North), New Makarpura, New Umbergaon and New JNPT.
Speaking at the programme, the Prime Minister said more than 430 freight trains are now operating daily on the Dedicated Freight Corridor network.
He said a double-stack container train travelling between JNPT and Vadodara can transport cargo equivalent to more than 250 trucks.
The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for three railway projects spanning 329 km and costing more than ₹9,700 crore.
These include the third and fourth railway lines between Vadodara and Ratlam, gauge conversion of the Miyagam Karjan-Choranda-Malsar section and doubling of the Vishwamitri-Dabhoi railway line.
The projects are aimed at increasing passenger and freight capacity and easing congestion on railway routes connecting Gujarat with Madhya Pradesh.
Modi also dedicated the Jobat-Tanda Road new railway line, part of the Chhota Udepur-Dhar railway project, to the nation. The project provides rail connectivity to tribal and remote areas of Alirajpur district in Madhya Pradesh.
A passenger train service between Tanda Road and Vadodara’s Pratapnagar station was also flagged off.
In the road sector, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for three National Highway projects worth around ₹1,780 crore.
The works include six-laning of the Kamrej-Chalthan section of NH-48, construction of additional structures including major bridges over the Tapi and Narmada rivers on the Vadodara-Surat section of NH-48, and grade-separated structures at Abhava, Mindhola and Khajod junctions on NH-53.
Six-lane flyovers at Kandari Chokdi and Luvara Patia on NH-48 were also inaugurated to improve traffic movement and road safety.
The programme also covered around ₹2,600 crore of projects of the Gujarat government.
These include the Vadodara Urban Development Authority Ring Road Phase-II, a 110 MW floating solar project at Kadana Dam and a new office building for the Vadodara Municipal Corporation.
The foundation stone was laid for the Kadana Dam floating solar project, while housing projects under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and a water-supply project covering 11 villages in eastern Vadodara were among the projects inaugurated.
Modi said completion of the Dedicated Freight Corridor would help separate freight and passenger traffic, improve cargo transit times and reduce logistics costs.
He also highlighted manufacturing activity in Vadodara and Gujarat, including railway coaches, wagons, solar equipment and the C-295 military transport aircraft programme.
According to the Prime Minister, India has manufactured 50,000 modern railway coaches and added nearly 2.5 lakh wagons to the railway network since 2014.
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