India will prosper only by improving infrastructure: Nitin Gadkari

India will prosper only by improving infrastructure: Nitin Gadkari

 

Srinagar, Jan 13: Union Minister for Road Transport and Highway Nitin Gadkari on Monday said the prosperous India will come up only by improving the infrastructure of the nation.

Addressing a gathering at Sonamarg after Prime Minister Modi inaugurated strategic Z-Morh or Sonamarg tunnel in the central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district , Gadkari said, “If we have to see prosperous, happy and well-off India, the mission that has been formulated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we have to build the infrastructure of our nation.”

“In my office, I have a quote from former U.S. President John F. Kennedy that says, ‘American roads aren’t good because the country is rich; the country is rich because its roads are good,” Gadkari said.

He said where roads are good, the country remains happy, prosperous and advanced.

“Unless the water, power, transport and communication would not improve till then there would be

no flourishing industry, business and tourism”, he added.

He said the Prime Minister Modi has narrated a mission for Jammu and Kashmir to see it happy, prosperous and advanced for that the industries should come up and tourism to flourish further so that the youth could get jobs and poverty could be elevated, for that attempts are being made to

build an infrastructure.

“Today is a historic day for Jammu and Kashmir that Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a strategic Sonamarg tunnel”, the Union Minister said.

He said the work on the Z-Morh tunnel was taken up in 2012 and later so many challenges and hindrances came for its construction and today.

“I am happy that the work on it has been completed and the 6.5 km long project costing Rs 27000 crore was inaugurated today,” he said.

The tunnel will help people travelling from Srinagar to Leh Ladakh which often was remaining closed for six months, will now help travel throughout the year.

Gadkari said similarly a 14 km long Zojila tunnel is also under construction with an approach road of 18 Kms at a cost of Rs 6,800 crore.

“Prime Minister Ji I am glad to announce that when the tender for the Zojila tunnel construction was issue for the 5th time at a cost of Rs 12000 crore, fixed by the government and now this tunnel would be completed at a cost of Rs 6,800 Crore a profit of about Rs 5000 crores for the country,” Gadkari said.

“We did study with modern technology and other things for a year on the construction of the Asia’s highest tunnel from the sea, Zojila tunnel, which is coming up will reduce the travel time from Srinagar to Leh by around 3hours and 30 minutes will become all season connectivity and will help

its sustainable development for the people”, he added.

He said the Zojila tunnel, when completed, without any doubt would be all season connectivity between Srinagar and Ladakh for the people.

“I am glad to announce that a 104 km long ring road for Srinagar at a cost of Rs 7,000 Crore has been sanctioned and the work on it is likely to be completed by December 2025”, he said adding.

He said with the completion of the Ring road the people from Baramulla, Kupwara, Bandipora, Kargil and the people willing to visit Leh would not need to enter Srinagar.

Gadkari said that four corridors at a cost of Rs 50,000 crore would come up between Jammu and Srinagar. The first corridor of 250 km long Jammu-Udhampur-Srinagar road would come up at a

cost of 16,000 crore and we are hopeful that the project would be completed by this December.

He said 33 tunnels would be built on this corridor and 15 have been completed while 18 more are being constructed and work on 9 tunnels are going on and that will reduce the travel time by 5 hours on the corridor and also reduce 70 kms of road strip. The work on 9 tunnels is likely to be completed by December 2025.

Gadkari said the second corridor being built between 202 km long Jammu-Chenani-Anantnag road at a cost of 14000 crore will be completed by December 2025. Five tunnels would come up on the road which will reduce 68 km of distance. The Kehlani and Dharamshala tunnels will also be completed by 2025 on the road strip, and the other three tunnels will be awarded till June 2025.

He said the third and important corridor would come up at 303 km long Surankote-Shopian-Baramulla-Uri at a cost of Rs 10,000 Crore and the project will be completed by 2027.

The people of Surankote and Rajouri would be facilitated by this project and it would also provide a direct connectivity between Jammu and Baramulla.

He said the DPR of 197 km has been taken up and soon it would be awarded.

The fourth corridor will be built between 203 km long Jammu-Akhnoor-Surankote-Poonch would come up at a cost of 5,000 crore would be a life line for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, Gadkari said and added the DPR work has been started soon the work on it would be started. The project would provide a direct connectivity from Jammu to Poonch and the people of Nowshera and Rajouri would be benefited.

Another project between 124 km long Rafiabad-Kupwara-Chamroote at a cost Rs 250,000 Crore will be completed till December 2027, he said. The road would be important for the people living near the Line of Control.

He said 51 km of road of the project would be completed by 2026 and 61Km long road would be awarded by June 2025.

“Yet another important four lane corridor of 250 km long road is coming up between Kathua-Basohli-Bhaderwah-Doda at a cost of Rs 30, 400 of which the preparations of DPR has been started and hopefully the work on it would be taken up very soon,” he said

UNI

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