PM Modi unveils Rs 23,000 cr worth Shillong-Silchar Corridor ahead of assembly elections in Assam

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday performed the ground breaking ceremony of the Shillong-Silchar Corridor, to be built with an investment of around Rs 22,860 crore. The corridor will span 166 km to improve connectivity between Meghalaya and Assam.

The ceremony was held in poll-bound Assam, where the first access-controlled greenfield four-lane high-speed corridor in North-East India will be constructed.

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The connectivity project will reduce the distance between Guwahati and Silchar and cut travel time from 8.5 hours to approximately 5 hours, the government said in a release.

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced that the government has received most of the clearances for the two airport projects in the state and construction of the same will begin soon.

PM Modi also performed Bhoomi Poojan for an elevated corridor on NH-306 from Trunk Road near Capital Point to Rangirkhari Point in Silchar (Phase-I).

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Further, he laid the foundation stone for a new College of Agriculture at Patharkandi in Karimganj district which aims to strengthen the ecosystem of agricultural education and research in Assam and provide students from the Barak Valley and neighbouring regions access to high-quality agricultural education closer to home.

"India is moving forward with the resolve to transform itself into a developed nation. On behalf of Assam, it is our endeavour that as India becomes developed, our Assam, too, will emerge as a strong and robust state. This is our goal," Sarma said.

He conveyed that the people of Assam will bring back the Modi government.

The prime minister is on a two-day visit to Assam ,where assembly elections will be held this year.

"The fertile lands of the Barak Valley and the tea gardens here have always helped farmers, trade routes, and education centres progress in the region. This region connects the whole of Assam and West Bengal," Modi said.