Prime Minister's Office
English rendering of PM’s speech at dedication of various railway projects to the nation from Ahmedabad, Gujarat
My Cabinet colleagues Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw ji, Darshanaben Jardosh, Ministers of Gujarat; MPs and MLAs; and my dear brothers and sisters who have gathered here in large numbers!
Today is a big day for Gujarat’s development and its connectivity. Lakhs of people of Gujarat who were facing difficulties due to non-availability of broad gauge lines in a substantial area, are going to get a lot of relief from today. A short while back, I got the opportunity to flag off the Asarwa-Udaipur train at Asarwa railway station. Trains running on the broad gauge from Lunidhar to Jetalsar have also been flagged off today.
Friends,
Today’s event is not only about two railway projects. The people outside Gujarat cannot easily guess how crucial these projects are that have been successfully accomplished. Decades have passed while waiting for the completion of this work. But I was fortunate to have got the opportunity to complete this work.
Friends,
A railway line without broad gauge is like a lonely island, which has no connection with anyone. It is like a computer without internet, a TV without cable or a mobile without network. Trains running on this route could not go to other states of the country, nor could trains from other states come here. Now from today this entire route has been revamped. Now the meter gauge line from Asarwa to Udaipur via Himmatnagar has been converted into broad gauge. And today in this event, people from both Gujarat as well as Rajasthan have joined us in large numbers. The gauge conversion work done between Lunidhar and Jetalsar will also improve the railway connectivity in this area. Trains originating from here will be able to go to any part of the country.
Friends,
When the meter gauge line on a route changes to broad gauge, it brings with it many new possibilities. Conversion of the 300 Km railway line from Asarwa to Udaipur to broad gauge, is therefore very crucial. With this rail section turned into broad gauge, tribal areas of Gujarat and Rajasthan will be connected to Delhi and North India. Due to this broad gauge, an alternate route is now available for Ahmedabad and Delhi. Moreover, a direct rail connectivity has also been established between the tourist places of Kutch and Udaipur. This will give an impetus to the tourist places of Kutch, Udaipur, Chittorgarh and Nathdwara. Traders here will also get the benefit of connecting directly to important industrial centers like Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad.The tiles industry of Himatnagar in particular is going to get a lot of benefit. Similarly, with the conversion of the Lunidhar-Jetalsar rail line to broad gauge, the Dhasa-Jetalsar section is now fully converted into broad gauge. This rail line passes through Botad, Amreli and Rajkot districts, which till now have had limited rail connectivity. With the completion of this line, people of Bhavnagar and Amreli will have direct connectivity to Somnath and Porbandar.
And friends, this will have another advantage. The distance between Bhavnagar and cities like Rajkot, Porbandar and Veraval in Saurashtra region has also been reduced by this route. At present the distance between Bhavnagar and Veraval is about 470 kms, which takes 12 hours to commute. After the completion of this broad gauge and the opening of the new route, it has now come down to less than 290 km. Due to this the travel time will also be reduced from 12 hours to six and a half hours.
Friends,
After the opening of the new route, the distance between Bhavnagar-Porbandar has come down by about 200 kms and the distance between Bhavnagar-Rajkot by about 30 kms. This rail route is now an alternate route between the busy Surendranagar-Rajkot-Somnath-Porbandar route. The trains running on the broad gauge route will accelerate the industrial development of Gujarat, boost the tourism sector in Gujarat and will also connect the areas which were earlier cut off from the country. Dedicating this project today, on National Unity Day, makes it more special.
Friends,
When the double engine government works, its impact is not only double, but manifold. Here, one and one doesn’t make 2 but becomes 11. The development of rail infrastructure in Gujarat is one such example. I will never forget the times before 2014 when I had to repeatedly approach the central government for new rail routes in Gujarat. Gujarat was treated unjustly in relation to the railways as also in other fields. But with the double engine government, not only the pace of work in Gujarat has increased, but also the power to expand it further. Between 2009 and 2014 there was less than 125 km of ‘railway line doubling’ work done in Gujarat while between 2014 and 2022, the ‘railway line doubling’ work done was more than 550 Km in Gujarat. Similarly, only about 60 km of track was electrified in Gujarat between 2009 and 2014 whereas between 2014 and 2022, more than 1700 km of track has been electrified. That is, the government of double engine has worked several times more than the previous governments.
And friends, we haven’t just improved the scale and speed, but have also reformed at various levels like quality, convenience, safety and cleanliness. The improvement in the condition of railway stations across the country is clearly visible today. The poor and middle class are also being given the same environment, which was once accessible only to the well-to-do people. You can see how modern and grand Gandhinagar station is! Now Ahmedabad station is also being developed in a similar way. Apart from this, in future, stations like Surat, Udhna, Sabarmati, Somnath and New Bhuj will also be before you in a modern avatar. Now Vande Bharat Express service has also started between Gandhinagar and Mumbai. With the introduction of the fastest train service in this route, it has become the most important business corridor for the country. This achievement has been possible only because of the double engine government.
Friends,
To give a new dimension to the development of Western Railway, 12 Gati Shakti Cargo Terminals have also been planned. The first Gati Shakti Multimodal Cargo Terminal has been commissioned in Vadodara circle. Soon the rest of the terminals will also be ready to provide their services. Due to the double engine government, both the pace and strength of development are increasing in every field.
Friends,
For decades after independence, the rich-poor gap, the urban-rural gap and the unbalanced development have been major challenges for our country. Our government is also engaged in solving these challenges of the country. Our policy has been very clear for the ‘development of all’, such as emphasizing upon the infrastructure, providing facilities to the middle class and giving the poor means to fight against poverty. This tradition of development has been established in the whole country today. Pucca houses, toilets, electricity, water, gas, free treatment and insurance facilities for the poor are the symbols of good governance today. Today, infrastructures like metro connectivity, electric vehicles, solar power, cheap internet, better roads, AIIMS, medical colleges, IITs, are providing new opportunities to the countrymen. We are trying to ensure that the lives of ordinary families are easier and commuting and carrying out business and trade are also easy.
Brothers & Sisters,
There has now been a drastic change in the approach to the development of connectivity infrastructure in the country. Now the work of connectivity is not being done in silos; like a road is built at one place, the rail track is laid in another while the airport is built in a third place. Instead a holistic system of connectivity is being developed. That is, it is being ensured that different modes of transport are also connected to each other. Here in Ahmedabad itself, the facilities of rail, metro and buses are being connected to each other. Similar work is being done in other cities as well. We are trying to ensure that be it passenger travel or freight movement, there should be seamless connectivity in every way so that different modes of transport are easily accessible. This will save time as well as save money.
Friends,
Gujarat is a major industrial hub. Logistics cost was a huge issue here. As a result, not only the businesses faced problems, but the price of the goods also increased. Therefore, today be it railways, highways, airports or ports, improving the connectivity is being emphasized. When the ports of Gujarat are empowered, it directly impacts the economy of the whole country. We have also experienced this in the last 8 years. During this period, the capacity of Gujarat’s ports has almost doubled. Now the ports of Gujarat are being connected with other parts of the country through the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor. A large part of it has already been completed. The special tracks being laid for goods trains will also expand industries in Gujarat. Opportunities will be created for new sectors. Similarly, a network of good roads is being laid along the entire coastline under the Sagarmala scheme.
Friends,
Development is a continuous process. Development goals are like the top of a mountain. As soon as you reach one peak, another peak starts appearing higher than the previous one. Then there are efforts to reach it. Development is one such process. Gujarat has scaled many peaks of development in the last 20 years. But in the coming 25 years, we have a huge goal for a developed Gujarat in front of us. Just like we have achieved success together in the last two decades, in the same way every Gujarati has to participate in the development journey in this ‘Amritkaal’. Our motto is ‘to build a developed Gujarat for a developed India’. And we all know that once a Gujarati decides to do something, he makes sure to accomplish it. Today is the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel. It is a proud moment for the country. Today we are reaping the benefits of what this great personality had done to unite India. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was the first Home Minister of the country. He had worked to unite the country. Every Indian is proud of Sardar Patel, isn’t it? Did Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel belong to BJP? He was not from BJP. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was a great leader of Congress. Today, on his birthday, I saw two newspapers. Congress Party Rajasthan has published full page advertisements in Gujarati newspapers. These advertisements have been published by the Congress government. But in that advertisement today, on the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, there is neither the name nor a photo of Sardar Patel. There was not even any homage paid to him. Such a grave insult to him, that too on the soil of Gujarat! How can the Congress which is unable to associate Sardar Patel with it, will associate itself with the countrymen? This is an insult to Sardar Sahib as well as to the country. He was not from BJP. He belonged to Congress. But he lived for the country and contributed immensely to the country. Today we are proud of constructing the world’s largest statue. But they are not even ready to mention his name.
Brothers Sisters,
Gujarat or the country can never forgive such an attitude.
Friends,
This railway also connects different parts of the country. Work goes on relentlessly to speed up the process of connecting north to south and east to west at a fast pace. Today you are also getting the benefit of the same. My best wishes to you!
Thanks a lot!
DISCLAIMER: This is the approximate translation of PM’s speech. Original speech was delivered in Hindi.