PM Modi’s Tamil Nadu Visit: ₹4800 Cr Projects to be Launched

• PM Narendra Modi will visit Tamil Nadu on July 26-27, launching and dedicating development projects worth over ₹4800 crore in Tuticorin.
• Key inaugurations include a new terminal at Tuticorin Airport, multiple rail and road projects, and a cargo handling facility at V.O. Chidambaranar Port.

GG News Bureau
Tuticorin/Tiruchirappalli, 25th July: Immediately after returning from his visits to the UK and Maldives, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, on July 26. He is scheduled to lay the foundation stone, inaugurate, and dedicate to the nation various development projects valued at over ₹4800 crore at a public event around 8 PM.

On July 27, the Prime Minister will participate in the celebration of the birth anniversary of the great Chola emperor Rajendra Chola I with the Aadi Thiruvathirai Festival. This event will take place around 12 noon at the Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple in Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu.

In Tuticorin, the Prime Minister will dedicate and inaugurate several landmark projects aimed at significantly enhancing regional connectivity, boosting logistics efficiency, strengthening clean energy infrastructure, and improving the quality of life across Tamil Nadu.

A key highlight will be the inauguration of the New Terminal Building at Tuticorin Airport, developed at a cost of approximately ₹450 crore. This modern facility, spread across 17,340 square meters, is designed to handle 1,350 passengers during peak hours and 20 lakh passengers annually, with future expansion capabilities. Built to achieve a GRIHA-4 sustainability rating, it is expected to greatly enhance regional air connectivity, tourism, trade, and investment in southern Tamil Nadu. The Prime Minister will also undertake a walkthrough of the new terminal.

In road infrastructure, PM Modi will dedicate two significant highway projects. The first is the 4-laning of the 50 km Sethiyathope–Cholapuram stretch of NH-36, costing over ₹2,350 crore, which will reduce travel time and improve connectivity to the Delta region. The second is the 6-laning of the 5.16 km NH-138 Tuticorin Port Road, built for around ₹200 crore, designed to ease cargo flow and support port-led industrial growth.

To bolster port infrastructure and clean energy, the Prime Minister will inaugurate North Cargo Berth–III at V.O. Chidambaranar Port, a ₹285 crore project with a cargo handling capacity of 6.96 MMTPA. This will meet the growing demand for dry bulk cargo and improve overall port efficiency.

Three vital railway infrastructure projects in southern Tamil Nadu will also be dedicated: the electrification of the 90 km Madurai–Bodinayakkanur line, the ₹650 crore doubling of the 21 km Nagercoil Town–Kanniyakumari section, and the doubling of the Aralvaymozhi–Nagercoil Junction (12.87km) and Tirunelveli–Melappalayam (3.6 km) sections. These projects aim to boost eco-friendly transport, strengthen regional links, and enhance passenger and freight capacity.

Further strengthening the state’s power infrastructure, PM Modi will lay the foundation stone for the Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) for evacuating electricity from Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant Units 3 and 4 (2×1000 MW). This ₹550 crore project, including a 400 kV transmission line to the Tuticorin-II GIS substation, will enhance the national grid and ensure reliable clean energy distribution.

In Tiruchirappalli, the Prime Minister will release a commemorative coin honoring Rajendra Chola I during the Aadi Thiruvathirai Festival at Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple. This event also marks 1,000 years of Rajendra Chola I’s legendary maritime expedition to South East Asia and the commencement of the construction of the iconic Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Rajendra Chola I, a powerful Chola ruler (1014–1044 CE), expanded the Chola Empire and established Gangaikonda Cholapuram as his imperial capital. The Aadi Thiruvathirai festival celebrates the rich Tamil Shaiva Bhakti tradition, which the Cholas fervently supported.