Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was on a visit to Telangana, laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment of Secunderabad Railway Station on Saturday. PM Modi arrived in Hyderabad on Saturday. He was received by Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan and Union Minister G Kishan Reddy at Begumpet Airport in Hyderabad. Telangana Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Bandi Sanjay was also present at the airport. He also flagged off the Secunderabad-Tirupati Vande Bharat Express.
Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao did not receive PM Modi at the airport. Instead, the CM deputed state minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav to receive the Prime Minister at Begumpet airport in his absence, as reported by ANI. The Telangana CM also skipped Prime Minister Modi's programme in the state on Saturday.
After flagging off the Secunderabad-Tirupati Vande Bharat Express, PM Modi said that It will connect faith, modernity, technology and tourism. "Today I have flagged off the Secunderabad-Tirupati Vande Bharat Express. It will connect faith, modernity, technology and tourism," PM Modi said, as quoted by ANI.
In a programme at Parade Ground, Hyderabad, PM Modi laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment of Secunderabad Railway Station and other infrastructure projects. During the programme, Prime Minister flagged off 13 new Multi-Modal Transport Service (MMTS) services in the suburban section of the Hyderabad-Secunderabad twin city region, providing commuters with a fast, convenient and comfortable travel option, as reported by ANI.
According to Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the redevelopment of Secunderabad Railway Station, to be done at a cost of Rs 720 crore, is being planned such that it will undergo a massive makeover with world-class amenities and an aesthetically designed iconic station building.
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The redeveloped station would be having double-level spacious roof plaza with all passenger amenities at one place along with multimodal connectivity for providing seamless transfer of passengers from rail to other modes among others.
Later in the day, PM Modi is scheduled to arrive in Chennai around 3 pm and will first inaugurate the state-of-the-art integrated terminal building at Chennai airport set up at a total outlay of Rs 2,437. The new terminal is expected to enhance the passenger traffic to 35 million per year, PTI reported.