On a two-day visit to Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate and lay foundation stones for projects worth over ₹77,000 crore, including India’s first 9000 HP locomotive engine manufactured at a railway unit in Dahod, a predominantly tribal district of the state.
PM Modi will visit Kharod in Dahod district on May 26, where he will inaugurate a rolling stock workshop and a locomotive manufacturing shop, which is set to manufacture 1,200 locomotive engines in the next 10 years. A key feature of the engines manufactured at this ₹21,405-crore facility, is their ability to carry cargo weighing up to 4,600 tonnes. For the first time, these engines will be equipped with air-conditioning and toilet facility for the driver.
The 9000 HP, six-axle electric engine will have an average speed of 75 km per hour and maintenance will be carried out at depots in Kharagpur (West Bengal), Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Raipur (Chhattisgarh) and Pune (Maharashtra). The project is expected to create 10,000 direct and indirect jobs in Dahod.
PM Modi will also inaugurate railway projects worth an additional ₹2,287 crore. He will also dedicate ₹233 crore worth of public development projects under the Dahod Smart City project. Dahod is one of the six smart cities declared in Gujarat. PM Modi will also visit Bhuj in Kutch district, where he will inaugurate 33 development projects worth ₹53,414 crore, including works undertaken under the ‘Mata Na Madh Master Plan’ at Ashapura Dham, a pilgrimage destination for devotees across Gujarat. Prime Minister will also visit the Mata Ashapura temple.