Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 12 inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of ₹85,000 crore railway projects, including the launch of 10 new Vande Bharat trains.
The PM launched the projects from the Sabarmati area of Ahmedabad in Gujarat after visiting the Dedicated Freight Corridor’s (DFC) Operation Control Centre in Ahmedabad.
Speaking at an event in Sabarmati, the Prime Minister said his government undertakes developmental works as part of its mission to build the nation and not to win elections as perceived by some people.
“Some people try to look at our efforts through the electoral lens. Let me tell you that we undertake developmental works as part of a mission to build the nation, not to form a government [by winning elections]. We want to ensure that our youth do not suffer what their past generations suffered. This is Modi’s guarantee,” he said.
The PM said that in the last 10 years, his government spent around six times more amount for the development of railways than was done earlier.
“In just over two months of 2024, we have inaugurated and laid the foundation of ₹11 lakh crore projects,” he said.
“I started my life on railway tracks, so I know how bad our railways were earlier,” he said.
Mr. Modi said he discontinued the separate railway budget and included it in the Union Budget so that government money could be used for the development of Railways.
PM Modi flags off 10 new Vande Bharat trains
The PM also said that till now, 350 ‘Aastha’ trains have facilitated 4.5 lakh people to visit Ayodhya.
He laid the foundation stone of railway workshops, loco sheds, pit lines/ coaching depots, the Phaltan-Baramati new line; electric traction system upgradation work and dedicated to the nation two new sections of the Dedicated Freight Corridor between New Khurja to Sahnewal (401 Rkm) section of the eastern DFC and New Makarpura to New Gholvad section (244 Rkm) of the western DFC; western DFC’s Operation Control Centre (OCC), Ahmedabad.
The PM flagged off 10 new Vande Bharat trains between Ahmedabad-Mumbai Central, Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam, Mysuru-Dr MGR Central (Chennai), Patna- Lucknow, New Jalpaiguri-Patna, Puri-Visakhapatnam, Lucknow-Dehradun, Kalaburagi-Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal Bengaluru, Ranchi-Varanasi and Khajuraho- Delhi (Nizamuddin).
He also flagged off the extension of four Vande Bharat trains.
The Ahmedabad-Jamnagar Vande Bharat train is being extended till Dwarka, Ajmer-Delhi Sarai Rohilla Vande Bharat till Chandigarh, Gorakhpur-Lucknow Vande Bharat till Prayagraj and Thiruvananthapuram-Kasargod Vande Bharat till Mangaluru.
The PM also flagged off two new passenger trains between Asansol and Hatia & Tirupati and Kollam stations.
Mr. Modi also flagged off freight trains on the DFC from various locations — New Khurja Junction, Sahnewal, New Rewari, New Kishangarh, New Gholvad, and New Makarpura.
He dedicated 50 Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras at various railway stations. These centres will offer affordable and quality generic medicines to the people.
The PM also dedicated to the nation 51 Gati Shakti Multi-Modal Cargo Terminals, which will promote the seamless movement of goods between different modes of transportation.
