Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Tamil Nadu and Lakshadweep on January 2 and 3, where he will launch and lay the groundwork for a number of development projects, according to his office on Sunday. According to a statement released by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Modi will arrive in Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, on January 2 and will be the principal guest at the 38th Convocation Ceremony of Bharathidasan University.
The prime minister will lay the groundwork for several development projects worth more than Rs 19,850 crore in the aviation, rail, road, oil and gas, shipping, and higher education sectors during a public event in Tiruchirappalli.
Modi will subsequently travel to Agatti, Lakshadweep, to speak at a public occasion.
On January 3, the prime minister will visit Kavaratti in Lakshadweep, where he will lay the groundwork for a number of development initiatives in sectors like as telecommunications, drinking water, solar power, and health.
He will open the New Terminal Building at Tiruchirappalli International Airport at the Tiruchirappalli programme.
The two-level new international terminal building, built at a cost of more than Rs 1,100 crore, has the potential to accommodate more than 44 lakh passengers yearly and around 3,500 people during peak hours, according to the announcement.
Modi will dedicate to the country a number of railway projects, including the doubling of a 160-kilometer rail line segment from Madurai to Tuticorin and three electrification projects.
According to the statement, the railway projects would assist improve rail capacity to convey goods and passengers, as well as contribute to economic growth and job creation in Tamil Nadu.
Modi will also dedicate to the nation five road sector projects that will improve connectivity of industrial and commercial centres such as Trichy, Srirangam, Chidambaram, Rameshwaram, Dhanushkodi, Uthirakosamangai, Devipattinam, Erwadi, and Madurai, among others, according to the statement.
He will also lay the groundwork for road development projects, including the building of a 31-kilometer section of four-lane NH 332A route from Mugaiyur to Marakkanam.The route will connect ports on Tamil Nadu's East Coast, improve road access to the world heritage site Mamallapuram, and improve access to the Kalpakkam Atomic Power Plant.
The Prime Minister will dedicate to the country Kamarajar Port's General Cargo Berth-II (Automobile Export/Import Terminal-II & Capital Dredging Phase-V).
During the trip, he will also lay the groundwork for major petroleum and natural gas projects worth over Rs 9,000 crore.The petroleum and natural gas industry initiatives will contribute to meeting the region's industrial, household, and commercial energy needs.
The prime minister will also dedicate to the country the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research Kalpakkam's Demonstration Fast Reactor Fuel Reprocessing Plant.
The facility, which cost Rs 400 crore to build, is equipped with a one-of-a-kind architecture that is capable of reprocessing both carbide and oxide fuels released from fast reactors. It was totally created by Indian experts and represents an important step towards the construction of major commercial-scale fast reactor fuel reprocessing systems.
Modi will also dedicate the 500-bed boys hostel 'AMETHYST' at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Tiruchirappalli.
Modi will lay the groundwork for development projects worth more than Rs 1,150 crore during his visit to Lakshadweep.
In a game-changing move, PM resolved to address the issue of slow internet speed in Lakshadweep by launching the Kochi-Lakshadweep Islands Submarine Optical Fibre Connection (KLI-SOFC) project, which he announced in his Independence Day speech at the Red Fort in August 2020.
Modi will launch the project after it is done. According to the statement, this would result in an increase in internet speed of more than 100 times (from 1.7 Gbps to 200 Gbps).
Lakshadweep will be connected via Submarine Optic Fibre Cable for the first time since independence.
The dedicated underwater OFC would enable quicker and more reliable internet services, telemedicine, e-governance, educational programmes, digital banking, and other services on the Lakshadweep islands.
Modi will also dedicate to the country the Kadmat Low Temperature Thermal Desalination plant, which would generate 1.5 lakh gallons of clean drinking water each day.
He will also dedicate to the country the Functional Household Tap Connections (FHTC) in all Agatti and Minicoy island households.
Other projects that will be dedicated to the country include the solar power plant at Kavaratti, which is Lakshadweep's first battery-backed solar power facility.
It will assist to minimise reliance on diesel-powered power plants, as will the new administrative block and 80-man barracks at the India Reserve Battalion Complex in Kavaratti.