PM Modi in Pune to inaugurate underground metro, slew of projects worth

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Pune on Thursday, September 26, to inaugurate the underground metro and several other projects worth ₹22,600 crore. He will also dedicate three Param Rudra Supercomputers and inaugurate the Solapur Airport during his visit.
At around 6 pm, PM Modi will flag off the metro train scheduled to run from District Court to Swargate station, marking the completion of phase 1 of the Pune Metro Rail Project. The cost of the underground section from District Court to Swargate is around ₹1,810 crore. Beginning around 6.30 pm, he will carry out groundbreaking/inauguration of various projects worth ₹22,600 crore.
Among these, the PM will lay the foundation stone of the Swargate to Katraj extension of the Pune Metro to be developed at a cost of around ₹2,950 crore. This extension is around 5.46 km long and is completely underground with three stations namely Market Yard, Padmavati and Katraj. The PM will also lay the foundation stone of the memorial for Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule’s first school for girls at Bhide Wada.
To make India self-reliant in the field of supercomputing, the PM will dedicate to the nation three Param Rudra Supercomputers worth around ₹130 crore, developed indigenously under the National Supercomputing Mission (NSM). These supercomputers have been deployed in Pune, Delhi and Kolkata to facilitate pioneering scientific research. The Giant Metre Radio Telescope (GMRT) in Pune will leverage the supercomputers to explore Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) and other astronomical phenomena. Inter University Accelerator Centre (IUAC) in Delhi will enhance research in fields such as material science and atomic physics. The S N Bose Centre in Kolkata will drive advanced research in areas such as physics, cosmology and earth sciences.
The PM will also inaugurate high-performance computing (HPC) systems tailored for weather and climate research. Around ₹850 crore is being invested in these systems located at two key sites; Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) Pune and National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecast (NCMRWF) Noida. They have been named ‘Arka’ and ‘Arunika’ to depict their connection to the Sun. These high-resolution models will significantly enhance the accuracy and lead time of predictions related to tropical cyclones, heavy precipitation, thunderstorms, hailstorms, heat waves, droughts, and other critical weather phenomena.
Furthermore, the PM will launch and dedicate to the nation various initiatives in the petroleum and natural gas sector worth ₹10,400 crore focusing on energy, infrastructure, safety and convenience of truck and cab drivers, cleaner mobility and a sustainable future.
The PM will launch ‘Wayside Amenities’ which includes affordable boarding and lodging facilities, clean toilets, safe parking space, cooking area, Wifi and gyms for truckers and cab drivers at Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Maharashtra; Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab; Songadh, Gujarat; and Belagavi and Bangalore, Karnataka. These amenities are being developed at a cost of around ₹2,170 crore at 1,000 retail outlets.
The PM will also launch energy stations at one retail outlet; nearly 4,000 energy stations will be developed over the next five years across the golden quadrilateral, east-west and north-south corridors, and other major highways at a cost of around ₹6,000 crore. The energy stations will help in providing seamless mobility through provision of alternate fuels under one roof to energy-seeking customers.
The PM will dedicate to the nation 500 EV charging facilities. The target is to set up 10,000 EV charging stations by FY 2025 at a cost of ₹1,500 crore. The PM will also dedicate to the nation 20 Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) stations across the country, including three in Maharashtra. To promote adoption of clean fuels such as LNG for long distance transportation, 50 LNG fuel stations will be developed in various states of the country by oil and gas companies at a cost of around ₹500 crore.
The PM will dedicate to the nation 1500 E20 (20% ethanol blended) petrol retail outlets worth around ₹225 crore.
Significantly, the PM will inaugurate the Solapur Airport which will improve connectivity considerably, making Solapur more accessible to tourists, business travellers and investors. The existing terminal building has been revamped to serve around 4.1 lakh passengers annually.
The PM will dedicate to the nation the Bidkin Industrial Area, a transformative project covering an expansive 7,855 acres under the National Industrial Corridor Development Programme of the Government of India, situated 20 km south of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar in Maharashtra. The project developed under the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor holds immense potential as a vibrant economic hub in the Marathwada region. The central government has approved this project with an overall project cost of over ₹6,400 crore to be developed in three phases.