PM Modi to embark on two-day visit to Kerala and Karnataka from today

New Delhi, Sep 01: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a two-day visit to Karnataka and Kerala beginning today. Modi will visit Sri Adi Shankara Janma Bhoomi Kshetram, the holy birthplace of Adi Shankaracharya, at Kalady village near Cochin Airport this evening. Thereafter, around 6 pm, Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone and dedicate to the nation various projects of Kochi Metro and Indian Railways worth over 4,500 crore rupees.

Modi will inaugurate the Phase I extension of the Kochi Metro Rail Project from Petta to SN junction. Kochi Metro Rail project will be one of the most sustainable metro projects in the country with nearly 55 percent of its energy needs being met by solar power. Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone for the Phase -II stretch of the Kochi Metro rail project from JLN stadium to Infopark, having a length of 11.2 kms and covering 11 stations.

Modi will dedicate to the nation the doubling of Kuruppanthara-Kottayam-Chingavanam rail section, completed at a cost of nearly 750 Crore rupees. He will also flag off two special trains. T With this, the entire stretch from Thiruvananthapuram to Mangaluru is fully doubled now, promising faster and seamless connectivity.

Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone for the redevelopment of three Railway stations in Kerala - Ernakulam Junction, Ernakulam Town and Kollam. These railway stations will be equipped with state-of-the-art amenities and world-class facilities such as dedicated arrival/departure corridors, sky-walks, solar panels, sewage treatment plants, energy-efficient lighting, rain-water harvesting and intermodal transport facilities.

The foundation stones for the redevelopment of Ernakulam Junction, Ernakulam Town and Kollam Junction Railway stations will be laid on the occasion. At the Cochin Shipyard, Modi will commission the first indigenous aircraft carrier as INS Vikrant, the largest ship ever built in the maritime history of the country. Shedding the vestiges of the colonial past, Mr Modi will unveil the new Naval ensign of the Indian Navy -- an ensign befitting the country's rich maritime heritage.