PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Pune Metro, Solapur Airport, lays foundation of other projects

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday, through video conferencing, inaugurated various projects in Maharashtra, including the Pune Metro's first phase and the upgraded Solapur airport, and laid the foundation of other ventures.

The Prime Minister was to unveil and launch these projects, worth over Rs 11,200 crore, on September 26 but due to heavy rains in Pune and around, he had cancelled his visit to the state.

In his remarks on the occasion, Prime Minister Modi said that these projects will give a boost to urban development and significantly add to 'Ease of Living' for the people.

Inaugurating the Pune Metro's section from the District Court to Swargate, which marked the completion of the Pune Metro Rail Project (Phase-1), he said that metro trains will now run on this route. The cost of the underground section was around Rs 1,810 crore.

Further, he laid the foundation stone for the Swargate-Katraj Extension of Pune Metro Phase-1 to be developed at the cost of around Rs 2,955 crore. This southern extension of around 5.46 km is completely underground with three stations - Market Yard, Padmavati, and Katraj.

Laying the foundation stone for the Memorial for Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule’s First Girls’ School at Bhidewada in Pune, PM Modi said that before the country's independence, the social conditions were such that the poor were discriminated against. In this situation, it was very tough for girls to get an education. Savitribai Phule was among the distinguished people who threw open the doors of education for girls.

He also inaugurated the Solapur Airport which would significantly improve connectivity, making Solapur more accessible to tourists, business travellers and investors. He said that the existing terminal building has been revamped to serve around 4.1 lakh passengers annually.

PM slams previous govts for lack of vision, planning for development 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday slammed the previous governments for lacking planning and vision for development of Pune and Maharashtra in general that heavily affected the pace of development. 

However, after the BJP-led government came to power in 2014 and later during the present Mahayuti government the development process has been expedited, he said.

“Unfortunately, in the previous decades, our country lacked both planning and vision in urban development. Even when the policies were formulated, the projects used to stand stalled for years and years. Maharashtra, and our country, faced losses due to this very culture of carelessness and neglect. But now, the times have changed,” said the Prime Minister in his virtual address after he laid the foundation stone, inaugurated and dedicated to the nation various projects including Pune Metro in Maharashtra worth over Rs 11,200 crore.