PM flags off 8 trains to boost connectivity to Statue of Unity

Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday flagged off eight trains connecting different parts of the country to Kevadia in Gujarat, via video conferencing. These trains will connect Kevadia to Varanasi, Dadar, Ahmedabad, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Rewa, Chennai and Pratapnagar.

Modi said these trains will help boost tourism in the tribal region and increase connectivity to the world’s tallest statue, the Statue of Unity, which he inaugurated in October 2018 on the occasion of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel”s 143rd birth anniversary.

The Ahmedabad-Kevadia Jan Shatabdi Express, one of the eight trains, has been equipped with the ”Vista-dome tourist coach” which offers large viewing areas with rooftop glasses and seats for passengers.

Modi also inaugurated the DabhoiChandod converted broad gauge railway line, ChandodKevadia new broad gauge rail line, newly electrified PratapnagarKevadia section and the new station buildings of Dabhoi, Chandod and Kevadia.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray and his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath joined the event via video link.