Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit his Lok Sabha constituency of Varanasi on Monday where he will inaugurate two important national highways, having a total length of 34 kilometres and constructed at a cost of Rs 1,571.95 crore, and an inland waterways terminal on river Ganga.
Prime Minister Modi will also receive a container vessel in Varanasi on the river Ganga in a first for the country’s inland water transport since Independence.
The 16.55 km Varanasi Ring Road Phase-I has been completed at a cost of Rs 759.36 crore, while the work of four-laning and construction of 17.25 km Babatpur-Varanasi road on NH-56 has cost Rs 812.59 crore. The roads have been constructed by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) under Bharatmala programme.
The two roads will reduce travel time in the region and will also provide easier and more convenient access to Sarnath, which is an important site for Buddhist pilgrimage.
The Babatpur Airport highway will link Varanasi to the airport and go on to Jaunpur, Sultanpur and Lucknow. With a flyover at Harhua and a Road Over Bridge at Tarna, the road will reduce the travel time from Varanasi to the airport. This will prove a big relief to the people of Varanasi and to tourists and other visitors to the city.
PM Modi to inaugurate inland waterways terminal on river Ganga.
In a separate event the same day, Prime Minister Modi will also present the country an inland waterways terminal on river Ganga in Varanasi. This will be the first of the four multi-modal terminals on River Ganga, which is a part of the World Bank-aided Jal Marg Vikas project of the Inland Waterways Authority of India.
The multimodal terminals aim to develop the stretch of River Ganga between Varanasi to Haldi for navigation of large vessels up to 1500-2000 tonnes weight, with an objective to promote inland waterways as a cheaper and more environment-friendly means of transport.
The estimated cost of this project is Rs 5,369.18 crores on a 50:50 sharing basis between the Indian government and the World Bank. Apart from this, he will also receive India?s First Container Cargo being transported on an Inland Waterway.
