By Our Correspondent
NEW DELHI/GUWAHATI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the states of Assam and West Bengal on February 7. At around 11:45 AM, Prime Minister will lay the Foundation Stone of two hospitals and launch ‘Asom Mala’, a programme for state highways and major district roads, at Dhekiajuli in Sonitpur District, Assam. Thereafter, at around 4:50 PM, he will dedicate to the Nation and lay the Foundation Stone of key infrastructure projects in Haldia, West Bengal.
Prime Minister will dedicate to the nation the LPG import terminal built by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited. It has been constructed with an investment of around Rs. 1100 crore and has a capacity of 1 Million Metric Tonne Per Annum. It will cater to the growing requirement of LPG in West Bengal and other states in Eastern and North-Eastern India and is an important step towards realizing the vision of the Prime Minister to provide clean cooking LPG to every household.
Prime Minister will dedicate to the nation the 348 km Dobhi – Durgapur Natural Gas Pipeline section, which is part of the Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga project. It marks an important milestone towards achieving ‘one nation, one gas grid’. Constructed with an investment of about Rs. 2400 crore, the pipeline will help revival of HURL Sindri (Jharkhand) fertilizer plant, supply gas to Matix Fertilizer Plant in Durgapur (West Bengal) and cater to gas demand of industrial, commercial and automobile sectors, and city gas distribution across all major towns in the State.
Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone of the second Catalytic-Isodewaxing unit of Haldia Refinery of Indian Oil Corporation. This unit will have a capacity of 270 Thousand Metric Tonne per annum, and once commissioned, is expected to result in a saving of about US$ 185 Million in foreign exchange.
Prime Minister will also dedicate to the nation the 4 Lane ROB-cum-Flyover at Ranichak, Haldia on NH 41. It has been built at the cost of Rs 190 crore. The commissioning of this flyover will result in uninterrupted movement of traffic from Kolaghat to Haldia Dock Complex and other surrounding areas, resulting in substantial saving in travel time and operating cost of heavy vehicles plying in and out of the port.
These projects are in line with Prime Minister’s vision of Purvodaya, of driving growth of Eastern India. Governor and Chief Minister of West Bengal, and Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas will be present on the occasion.
Prime Minister will launch ‘Asom Mala’, aimed at helping improve state highways and major district roads network in the State. The programme is unique for its emphasis on effective maintenance through continuous field data collection and its linkage with the Road Asset Management System. ‘Asom Mala’ will provide quality inter-linkage roads between the National Highways and the rural roads network as well as facilitate seamless multi-modal transportation. It will interconnect economic growth centers with transportation corridors and improve inter-state connectivity. Chief Minister of Assam will be present on the occasion.
Prime Minister will also lay the Foundation Stone of two medical colleges and hospitals, which are being set up at Biswanath and Charaideo, at a total estimated project cost of over Rs 1100 crore. Each hospital will have 500 bed capacity and 100 MBBS seats capacity. The increase in the number of medical colleges and hospitals will not only mitigate the shortage of doctors in the State but also make Assam a hub for tertiary care and medical education for the entire North Eastern region.
