PM Modi lays thrust on investments in infrastructure

DAUSA: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday stressed on making investments in infrastructure stating that the country's progress gains momentum when modern roads and airports among others are built.

The Prime Minister said that investment in infrastructure attracts more investment.

His remarks followed the inauguration of the first section of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway in Rajasthan's Dausa.

"When modern roads, railway stations, metro, and airports are built, the country's progress gains momentum. Investment in infrastructure attracts even more investment. For the last 9 years, the central government is also continuously making huge investments in infrastructure," the Prime Minister said.

Highlighting that the Centre has made investments in infrastructure in the last nine years, PM Modi said that the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor are going to become two strong pillars of progress for Rajasthan and the country.

"In this year's budget, we have made a provision of Rs 10 lakh crore for the infrastructure. This amount is five times the amount allotted in 2014. Rajasthan is going to hugely benefit from this investment," he said.

The Prime Minister said that the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway presents the developed face of India.

"I take great pride in dedicating the first phase of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway to the nation today. The Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is one of the largest and most modern expressways. It presents the developed face of India. I congratulate the residents of Dausa and the countrymen," he said.

"This modern connectivity will also benefit many tourist places like Sariska Tiger Reserve, Keoladeo and Ranthambore National Park, Jaipur, and Ajmer. Rajasthan has already been attractive for tourists from the country and abroad, now its attraction will increase further," PM Modi added elaborating on the benefits of the Expressway.

Opening of this section will reduce the travel time from Delhi to Jaipur from 5 hours to around 3.5 hours and provide a major boost to the economic development of the entire region.

Delhi Mumbai Expressway will be India's longest expressway with a length of 1,386 km.

It will reduce the travel distance between Delhi and Mumbai by 12 per cent from 1,424 km to 1,242 Km and travel time will be reduced by 50 per cent from 24 hours to 12 hours.

It will pass through six states of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra and connect major cities like Kota, Indore, Jaipur, Bhopal, Vadodara and Surat.

The Expressway will also serve 93 PM Gati Shakti Economic Nodes, 13 ports, 8 major airports and 8 multi-modal logistics parks (MMLPs) along with spurs to new upcoming greenfield airports such as Jewar Airport, Navi Mumbai Airport and JNPT port.