Prime Minister to inaugurate development projects worth over Rs. 15,600 crore in Bengaluru

To dedicate India's largest underground LPG storage facility in Mangaluru; offer prayers at Ambaji Temple in Gujarat

New Delhi, 13 November (H.S.): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a two-day visit to Karnataka and Gujarat from Friday. During his visit to Bengaluru, he will participate in the Golden Jubilee celebrations of Prashanti Kutiram at around 10:45 am. At approximately 12:45 pm, the Prime Minister will flag off the metro service from Tavarekere to IIM Bengaluru Metro Station and undertake a ride on the train. At around 1:15 pm, he will inaugurate, lay the foundation stones for and dedicate to the nation various development projects worth more than Rs. 15,600 crore in Bengaluru. He will also address a public gathering on the occasion.

Thereafter, the Prime Minister will travel to Mysuru, where he will inaugurate the COSMOS-Mysuru Planetarium at around 3:30 pm and address the gathering.

On November 14, the Prime Minister will visit the Ambaji Temple in Banaskantha district of Gujarat at around noon to offer prayers and perform puja. The Ambaji Temple is one of the 51 revered Shakti Peethas. This information was provided in an official release.

Prime Minister in Bengaluru

The Prime Minister will participate in the Golden Jubilee celebrations of Prashanti Kutiram, the residential headquarters campus of the Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (S-VYASA). On the occasion, he will lay the foundation stone for the Golden Jubilee Administrative Block and launch the S-VYASA off-campus centre in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

The Golden Jubilee celebrations, being organised from November 13 to 23 on the theme ‘Towards Viksit Bharat 2047’, mark five decades of institution-building and service. Established in 1975, Prashanti Kutiram was founded with the objective of integrating modern science with India's spiritual wisdom. It serves as the headquarters of S-VYASA, which was recognised as a deemed-to-be university in 2002 and is dedicated to education and research in yoga.

The programme will also commemorate the birth centenary of eminent thinker, writer and organiser Hongasandra Venkataramaiah Sheshadri, who was born in Bengaluru in 1926. He joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1946 and served as its Sarkaryavah from 1987 to 2000. One of the visionaries associated with S-VYASA, Sheshadri's inspiration and guidance played an important role in shaping the growth of Prashanti Kutiram and advancing the institution's objectives over several decades.

The Prime Minister will inaugurate, dedicate to the nation, lay the foundation stones for and flag off various development projects in Bengaluru involving an investment of more than Rs. 15,600 crore. These projects cover major sectors, including urban transport and mobility, power transmission, renewable energy, petroleum infrastructure, waste management and railways.

The Prime Minister will inaugurate the Bengaluru Metro's Pink Line stretch from Kalena Agrahara to Tavarekere, developed at an estimated cost of around Rs. 3,470 crore. The new section will strengthen urban connectivity, facilitate daily commuting, reduce travel time and improve public transport facilities in Bengaluru.

He will also inaugurate the transmission scheme for the integration of renewable energy zones at Koppal-II and Gadag-II under Phase II, developed at an investment of approximately Rs. 4,450 crore. The transmission system will facilitate the evacuation of around 2 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity from the Koppal and Gadag regions of Karnataka for transmission and distribution through the power grid.

PM Modi will also inaugurate the transmission scheme for the solar energy zone in Bidar, developed at an investment of around Rs. 1,370 crore. The project includes the establishment of the Bidar Pooling Station and will facilitate the evacuation of 2.5 gigawatts of solar power from the region.

The Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for the transmission scheme for the integration of the Davanagere/Chitradurga and Ballari Renewable Energy Zones, involving an investment of more than Rs. 3,450 crore. He will also lay the foundation stone for a transmission system strengthening project to integrate additional renewable energy capacity in Davanagere and Ballari, at a cost of over Rs. 1,100 crore.

He will dedicate to the nation India's largest underground LPG storage facility in Mangaluru, constructed at a cost of more than Rs. 850 crore. With a storage capacity of 80,000 metric tonnes, the facility will significantly strengthen India's LPG storage infrastructure. The project also includes a 9.4-km LPG pipeline connecting New Mangalore Port with the main terminal, facilitating the efficient transportation and storage of LPG.

The Prime Minister will also dedicate to the nation the Devangonthi Marketing Terminal of Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) in Bengaluru. Constructed at a cost of Rs. 330 crore, the state-of-the-art facility will strengthen petroleum product storage and distribution infrastructure in Karnataka.

PM Modi will lay the foundation stone for GAIL's Compressed Biogas (CBG) Plant at Haralakunte in Bengaluru. The plant will process approximately 300 tonnes of municipal solid waste every day to produce 12.6 tonnes of clean compressed biogas. The project will promote scientific waste management, reduce dependence on conventional fuels and contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable environment.

The Prime Minister will inaugurate four railway stations redeveloped under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme — Chamarajanagar, Chikkamagaluru, Sakleshpur and Subrahmanya Road. The redeveloped stations will provide improved facilities to passengers. Their location within city centres is also expected to encourage local commercial activity and promote tourism in the surrounding areas.

He will dedicate to the nation the 45-km Bagalkot-Wandal railway line doubling section, which forms part of the 284-km Gadag-Hotgi Doubling Project. The section will improve passenger and freight movement, benefit local businesses and facilitate the transportation of coal to the Kudgi NTPC plant.

The Prime Minister will also dedicate to the nation the electrification of the 55-km Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road Ghat railway section. Passing through one of the most challenging railway terrains in India, the project represents a significant engineering achievement. With its completion, the entire Bengaluru-Mangaluru railway route will become fully electrified.

PM Modi will also flag off the Bengaluru-Mangaluru-Madgaon Vande Bharat Express, providing faster and modern rail connectivity between Bengaluru, coastal Karnataka and Goa. Before reaching Madgaon, the service will connect important destinations, including Hassan, Sakleshpur, Mangaluru, Udupi, Murdeshwar, Gokarna and Karwar. The new service will benefit passengers and give a boost to tourism across the region.

Prime Minister in Mysuru

The Prime Minister will inaugurate the COSMOS-Mysuru Planetarium, marking a significant milestone in the fields of planetarium technology and astronomy education in the country. Developed by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), it is India's first LED-dome planetarium. The facility has been established as a major centre for astronomy education and training. It is located on the University of Mysore campus at the foothills of the Chamundi Hills.

The state-of-the-art facility features a 15-metre tilted dome comprising approximately 6,150 panels and 4.2 crore individual LEDs. Unlike conventional planetariums, which use projectors to display images on a passive dome, its LED panels can be controlled instantaneously, providing an immersive visual experience and opening up new possibilities in astronomy education.

The Sky Theatre will screen professionally produced astronomy programmes, along with an in-house film exploring the relationship between the history of Mysuru and astronomy. These shows will be available in Kannada, English and Hindi.

The centre will also house exhibition halls, a museum featuring astronomy models and artefacts, a lecture hall, a training centre and interactive outdoor exhibits.

The activities of the centre will complement the research undertaken by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, including the operation of multi-wavelength telescope facilities across the country and in space, the development of future astronomical facilities and national-level outreach programmes.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar