Modi to visit J&K for a day: PMO

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a day-long visit to Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday during which he will visit all three regions to inaugurate development projects.

After attending the closing ceremony of the birth centenary celebration of the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche in Leh, Modi will unveil a plaque to mark the commencement of work on the Zojila Tunnel, the Prime Minister's Office said.

This will be India's longest road tunnel and Asia's longest bi-directional tunnel.

The construction of this tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity between Srinagar, Kargil and Leh. It will cut down the time taken to cross the Zojila pass from the present three and a half hours to just 15 minutes.

It will lead to all-round economic and socio-cultural integration of these regions. It also has immense strategic importance, the announcement said.

The Prime Minister will dedicate the 330 MW Kishanganga Hydropower project to the nation, at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC) in Srinagar. He will also lay the foundation stone of the Srinagar Ring Road.

Modi would lay the foundation stone of the Pakul Dul Power Project and the Jammu Ring Road. He will also inaugurate the Tarakote Marg and Material Ropeway of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, it said.

The Tarakote Marg will facilitate pilgrims visiting the shrine.

Ring Roads in Srinagar and Jammu are aimed at reducing traffic congestion and making road travel safer, faster, more convenient and more environment friendly.

The Prime Minister will also attend the Convocation of the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Jammu.

--IANS

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