DEHRADUN: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 45-minute address at a public rally on Saturday, December 4, 2021, centred around the theme of development. He was here to lay the foundation stones of multiple projects aimed at infrastructural upgrade in the hill state.
“A mahayajna of connectivity and development is going on in the country. And a major part of that is taking place in Devbhoomi,” said Modi.
The PM’s speech focused on projects and the work done by the Centre and the state government, especially in public welfare schemes. “This pace of development is not going to slow down. In the next five years, Uttarakhand is going to celebrate 25 years. The people have Pushkar Singh Dhamiji as the chief minister and his experienced team dedicated for the development and welfare of Uttarakhand,” the PM added.
“Uttarakhand is not only the centre of faith for the country, but also an epitome of workmanship and hard work. Hence, development of this state is priority. That is why the Central government has sanctioned projects worth Rs 1 lakh crore in the last seven years.”
Reminding the people of Uttarakhand of the election slogan of 2017 — double engine government — he said, “Those who question the double engine government can see how this has become the origin of developmental projects.”
He started his address by greeting the crowd in Garhwali language, to loud cheers. Recalling former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s decision to grant statehood to Uttarakhand, Modi alleged that successive governments did nothing and that the incumbent governments at Centre as well as the state are trying to compensate for that damage.
“The previous government spent only Rs 600 crore and our government has spent Rs 12,000 crore. You tell me, is Uttarakhand not priority for us? We are working for Uttarakhand day and night,” the PM added.
Talking about farmers, he said that the government has empowered them through Kusum Yojana and the Ujala scheme.
“We have reduced electricity bills by providing LED bulbs. We lowered costs from Rs 300-400 to Rs 50. Now, every house has LED bulbs. We helped lowering the rates of mobile and internet. Common service centers have enabled our villages to avail services at their homes,” Modi said.
The PM concluded his speech by thanking the people of Uttarakhand, especially women. “I am in Devbhoomi, in the land of brave mothers. I bow down to them. I have come to the land of Gods and I am ecstatic.”
Delhi-Dehradun economic corridor flagship project
PM Narendra Modi laid foundations for several projects in Uttarakhand on Saturday. They are aimed mainly at road infrastructure, to make travel smooth and safer and increase tourism in the region
2021 and 2023 Targeted completion
Other projects inaugurated by PM
Landslide mitigation project at Lambagad (enroute Badrinath Dham) & chronic landslide treatment at Sakanidhar, Srinagar, Devprayag on NH-58.
Key project
Divided into 4 sections
Section 1: Six lanes. Package 1 falls in Delhi over 14.75 km (6.4 km elevated). Package 2 falls in Uttar Pradesh over 16.85 km (11.2 km elevated). Starts at Akshardham Temple near Delhi-Meerut Expressway & passes through Geeta Colony, Khajurikhas, Mandola etc
Section 2: Six lanes. Passing through Baghpat, Shamli, Muzaffarnagar and Saharanpur. Land acquisition going on. Forest/Environment clearance proposal applied for
Section 3: Four lanes. Starts from Saharanpur bypass & ends at Ganeshpur. Underpasses & service road being planned to make it fully access controlled to achieve minimum 100 km/hr speed
Section 4: Six lanes. Complete access controlled. Passes through reserve forests in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand. Out of 20 km, 15 km is realignment comprising of elevated wildlife corridor (12 km). Forest and wildlife clearance obtained
Salient Features