Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Dehradun, Uttarakhand on Saturday, where he is scheduled to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of multiple projects including the ambitious Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor worth around ₹18,000 crore.
According to the statement by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor (from Eastern Peripheral Expressway Junction to Dehradun) will be built at a cost of around ₹8,300 crore.
Apart from this, he will also lay the foundation stone of 10 development projects and inaugurate seven others. Most of these projects are focused on improving the road infrastructure of Dehradun, making travel safer to the city, situated at the foothills of the Himalayas.
After completion, the Delhi-Dehradun Corridor will reduce the travel time from the national capital to the city of Uttarkhand to 2.5 hours. Currently, by road, it takes about six hours to reach there from Delhi.
It will have seven major interchanges for connectivity to Haridwar, Muzaffarnagar, Shamli, Yamunanagar, Baghpat, Meerut and Baraut.
The corridor will also have Asia's largest wildlife elevated corridor (12 km) for unrestricted wildlife movement. Also, the 340-metre long tunnel near Dat Kaali temple, Dehradun will help reduce the impact on wildlife, the government has stated.
The Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor will have arrangements for rainwater harvesting at intervals of 500 meters and over 400 water recharge points.
The corridor is expected to boost the overall economy of the region. In the statement, the government said that this project will provide seamless connectivity and reduce logistics costs.
The construction of the Delhi-Dehradun corridor is also expected to give
impetus to the development of tourism, especially in Haridwar, a popular pilgrimage site.