New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the country's fourth Vande Bharat Express train and inaugurate a slew of developmental projects in Himachal Pradesh's Una district on Thursday. The Prime Minister will also dedicate IIIT Una to the nation and lay the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park in the district, a statement from the PMO said Wednesday.


Modi will flag off the inaugural run of the new Vande Bharat Express from Amb Andaura to New Delhi. It will be the fourth Vande Bharat train to be introduced in the country and is an advanced version compared to the earlier ones, being much lighter and capable of reaching higher speed in a shorter duration.


The train will run six days a week except on Wednesdays, with stops at Ambala, Chandigarh, Anandpur Sahib, and Una. It accelerates to 100 km per hour in just 52 seconds. The introduction of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and faster mode of travel.


Himachal Pradesh is going to polls later this year.


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Last month, PM Modi flagged off the third Vande Bharat Express in another poll-bound state Gujarat.


This train runs from Gandhinagar to Mumbai.


While in the state, PM Modi will also dedicate IIIT Una to the nation, the foundation stone for which was laid by him in 2017. Currently, more than 530 students are pursuing studies in this institute.


The Bulk Drug Park in Una for which he will lay the foundation stone will be built at a cost of over Rs 1900 crore. The park will help reduce dependence on API imports. It is expected to attract investment of around Rs. 10,000 crore and provide employment to more than 20,000 people. It will also give a fillip to economic activities in the region, the statement said.


After that, at a public function at Chamba, Modi will lay the foundation stone of the 48 MW Chanju-III hydro-electric project and the 30 MW Deothal Chanju hydro-electric project which will generate over 270 million units of electricity annually. Himachal Pradesh is expected to get annual revenue of around Rs 110 crore from these projects.


The Prime Minister will also launch Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-III in the state for upgrading of around 3125 km of roads. More than Rs 420 crore has been sanctioned by the Centre under this phase for the upgrade of 440 km of roads in 15 border and far-flung blocks of the state.