PM Modi to open Mumbai Trans-harbour link Atal Setu for public on Friday

Mumbai/Nashik: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 27th National Youth Festival in Nashik on Friday and later launch development projects worth over Rs 30,500 crore in Maharashtra.

In line with his vision to boost people's ease of mobility by strengthening urban transport infrastructure and connectivity, Modi will inaugurate the Mumbai Trans-harbour link (MTHL), now named 'Atal Bihari Vajpayee Sewari-Nhava Sheva Atal Setu', constructed at a cost of over Rs 17,840 crore, a statement said earlier.

Modi had laid the foundation stone of the bridge in December 2016. It is the longest bridge in India and also the longest sea bridge in India.

The bridge is about 21.8 km long six-lane bridge having about 16.5 km length over sea and about 5.5 km on the land.

It will provide faster connectivity to the Mumbai International Airport and Navi Mumbai International Airport and will also reduce the travel time from Mumbai to Pune, Goa and South India. It will also improve connectivity between Mumbai Port and Jawaharlal Nehru Port, the statement said.

At a public event in Navi Mumbai, the prime minister will inaugurate and lay the foundation stones of various projects, including the underground road tunnel connecting Eastern Freeway's Orange Gate to Marine Drive. The 9.2-km-long tunnel will be built at a cost of more than Rs 8,700 crore and will be a significant infrastructure development in Mumbai, it said.

Among other projects, he will dedicate Phase 1 of the Surya regional bulk drinking water project to the nation. Developed at a cost of more than Rs 1,975 crore, it will provide drinking water supply to Palghar and Thane districts of Maharashtra, benefiting about 14 lakh population.

Modi will launch several rail projects as well.

He will inaugurate 'Bharat Ratnam' (Mega Common Facilitation Centre) for Gems and Jewellery sector at Santacruz Electronic Export Processing Zone- Special Economic Zone (SEEPZ SEZ), which is the first of its kind in India with the best available machines in the world including 3D metal printing.

This will house a training school for skilling of workforce for this sector, including specially-abled students. The Mega CFC will transform the export sector in Gems and Jewellery trade and will help domestic manufacturing also, the statement said.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday visited the Navi Mumbai venue of the PM’s public programme to inspect the preparations, his office said.

Shinde also visited the Tapovan Ground in Nashik, the venue of the National Youth Festival which will be inaugurated by PM Modi on Friday. The CM inspected the helipad that has been set up at Nilgiri Baug ground as well as the route of the PM's road show apart from the main stage of the function, officials said on Thursday.

The National Youth Festival is organised every year from January 12 to 16. Swami Vivekananda's birth anniversary falls on January 12. The theme of this year's festival is “Viksit Bharat@ 2047: Yuva ke liye, yuva ke dwara”, a statement had said earlier.

Thousands of youths have gathered in Nashik to participate in the festival that is organised every year on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said on Thursday. CM Shinde and other dignitaries will also be present on the occasion, he said.