New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of multiple projects, including the Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor, worth around Rs 18,000 crore in Dehradun on December 4 during his visit to Uttarakhand.
The PMO said in a statement that a significant focus of the visit will be on projects to improve road infrastructure, which will make travel smooth and safer, and also increase tourism in the region.
This is in line with Modi's vision to boost connectivity in the areas which were once considered far-flung, it noted.
The prime minister will lay the foundation stone of 11 development projects, and this includes the Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor (from Eastern Peripheral Expressway Junction to Dehradun) which will be built at a cost of around Rs 8,300 crore.
It will significantly reduce the travel time from Delhi to Dehradun from six hours to around 2.5 hours. It will have seven major interchanges for connectivity to Haridwar, Muzaffarnagar, Shamli, Yamunagar, Baghpat, Meerut and Baraut.
It will have Asia's largest wildlife elevated corridor (12 km) for unrestricted wildlife movement. Also, the 340 metre long tunnel near Dat Kaali temple, Dehradun will help reduce impact on wildlife, the PMO said.
Further, multiple animal passes have been provided in the Ganeshpur-Dehradun section for avoiding animal-vehicle collisions. The Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor will also have arrangements for rainwater harvesting at intervals of 500 metre and over 400 water recharge points.
The greenfield alignment project from Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor, connecting Halgoa, Saharanpur to Bhadrabad, Haridwar will be constructed at a cost of over Rs 2,000 crore. It will provide seamless connectivity and reduce travel time from Delhi to Haridwar as well.
The Haridwar Ring Road Project from Manoharpur to Kangri, to be built at a cost of over Rs 1600 crore, will give a respite to residents from traffic congestion in Haridwar city, especially during peak tourist season, and also improve connectivity with Kumaon zone, it added.
The Dehradun-Paonta Sahib (Himachal Pradesh) road project, to be constructed at a cost of around Rs 1,700 crore, will reduce travel time and provide seamless connectivity between the two places. It will also boost inter-state tourism.
The Nazimabad-Kotdwar road widening project will reduce travel time and also improve connectivity to Lansdowne.
A bridge across the River Ganga next to the Laksham Jhula will also be constructed. The world renowned Lakshman Jhula was constructed in 1929, but has now been closed due to decreased load carrying capacity. The bridge to be constructed will have provision of a glass deck for people walking, and will also allow light weight vehicles to move across, the statement said.
The prime minister will also lay the foundation stone for the Child Friendly City Project, Dehradun to make the city child friendly by making the roads safer for their travel.
Foundation stone for projects related to development of water supply, road and drainage system in Dehradun at a cost of over Rs 700 crore will also be laid.
In line with Modi's vision to develop smart spiritual towns and upgrade tourism related infrastructure, the foundation stone for infrastructure development works at Shri Badrinath Dham and Gangotri-Yamunotri Dham will be laid. Also, a new medical college in Haridwar will be constructed at a cost of over Rs 500 crore, it said.
He will also inaugurate seven projects, including those which focus on making travel safer by tackling the problem of chronic landslides in the region.
Among these projects are the landslide mitigation project at Lambagad (which is en-route the Badrinath Dham), and chronic landslide treatment at Sakanidhar, Srinagar and Devprayag on NH-58. The Lambagad landslide mitigation project in the chronic landslide zone includes construction of reinforced earth wall and rockfall barriers. The location of the project further adds on to its strategic significance.
Also being inaugurated are the road widening projects from Devprayag to Srikot, and from Brahmpuri to Kodiyala on NH-58, under Chardham road connectivity project, the PMO said.
The 120 MW Vyasi Hydroelectric Project, built over River Yamuna at a cost of over Rs 1700 crore, will also be inaugurated, along with a Himalayan Culture Center at Dehradun.
The Himalayan Culture Centre will house a state level museum, 800 seat art auditorium, library, conference hall, etc. which will help people follow cultural activities as well as appreciate cultural heritage of the state.
Modi will also inaugurate the state-of-the-art Perfumery and Aroma Laboratory (Centre for Aromatic Plants) in Dehradun.
The research done here will prove useful for production of a variety of products including perfumes, soaps, sanitisers, air fresheners, incense sticks etc., and will lead to establishment of related industries in the region as well.
It will focus on development of high yielding advanced varieties of aromatic plants as well.
