PM's visit to Vizag confirms South Coast Railway zone
The new zone commitment was made by the PM at a public meeting here on the eve of general elections in 2019
image for illustrative purpose
Modi is expected to launch several welfare programmes funded by the government of India which includes the dedication of Rs 26,000 crore expansion of HPCL Visakh Refinery and laying of stone for beautification of Waltair Railway Station here at a cost of Rs 400 crore
Visakhapatnam: The long awaited promise for formation of South Coast Railway (SCoR) Zone appears to finally take shape with the decision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Vizag and kick-start the process for operationalising the new zone with headquarters in Visakhapatnam on November 11, officials said.
An indication to this effect has been received by the official machinery here following which the top officials of the district administration held a preliminary meeting to discuss the tentative itinerary and make elaborate arrangements for the VVIP programme. An official announcement on the Prime Minister's programme is awaited anytime.
Modi is expected to launch several welfare programmes funded by the government of India which includes the dedication of Rs 26,000crore expansion of HPCL Visakh Refinery to the nation and laying of stone for beautification of Waltair Railway Station here at a cost of Rs 400 crore.
State Education minister Botcha Satyanarayana said the State government will try to lay the foundation stones for the Bhogapuram International Airport and Tribal University at Salur. Both the projects are located in Vizianagaram district. Bhogapuram, where a greenfield airport is proposed to be developed by the GMR Group, is at a distance of 40 km from Visakhapatnam.
It is not yet known whether the Visakhapatnam International Airport, from where the naval and commercial flights are operated, will meet the fate like the Begumpet airport in Hyderabad. After the inauguration of the international airport at Shamshabad, Begumpet airport was closed for civilian flights.
Officials said the Prime Minister is also scheduled to address a public meeting at the Andhra University Engineering College grounds on the same day. The Bhogapuram airport work has not started yet due to legal hurdles regarding acquisition of a parcel of land from local villagers for laying the approach road to the airport and construction of terminal building.
The inauguration of the green campus of Indian Institute of Management-Visakhapatnam at Gambheeram, an international maritime cruise terminal at Visakhapatnam Port Authority developed with funds released under Sagarmala Mission, are also expected to form part of the Prime Minister's itinerary.
The new zone commitment was made by Modi at a public meeting here on the eve of general elections in 2019 following a promise made at the time of bifurcation. After that the Railway Board stated that the proposal was found to be unviable on technical grounds. It drew flak from the trade unions, Opposition parties and civil society organisations following which the BJP leaders including GVL Narasimha Rao, Daggubati Purandeswari and PVN Madhav said they would convince their central high command and Railway Ministry on the need to carve out the new zone in deference to public opinion.
