CHENNAI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate a series of development projects in Tamil Nadu during his visit to Thoothukudi on Saturday, including key railway electrification and doubling works valued at Rs 1,030 crore.
The PM will dedicate three critical railway infrastructure projects: Electrification of the 90 km Madurai-Bodinayakkanur line, doubling of the 21 km Nagercoil Town-Kanniyakumari section under the Thiruvananthapuram-Kanniyakumari corridor, and doubling of the Aralvaymozhi-Nagercoil Junction (12.87 km and Tirunelveli-Melappalaiyam (3.6 km) stretches.
The Madurai-Bodinayakkanur section, previously a meter gauge route, was converted to broad gauge at a cost of Rs 99 crore. This is expected to promote environmentally sustainable transport, enhance tourism, and benefit farmers, students, and small traders in the Madurai and Theni districts.
Similarly, the doubling of tracks in Tirunelveli and Kanniyakumari will significantly boost rail connectivity across southern Tamil Nadu.
The project facilitates the introduction of more passenger and freight services while enhancing overall operational efficiency, according to an official release.
For the Nagercoil Town-Kanniyakumari doubling project alone, the railways incurred an expenditure of Rs 650 crore, forming a vital part of the larger Thiruvanan–thapuram-Kanniyakumari corridor. The remaining two sections – Aralvaymozhi-Nagercoil and Tirunelveli-Melappalaiyam - were completed at a cost of Rs 283 crore, the release said.