Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated phase II of the Metro rail extension connecting the twin cities of Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar.
PM Modi waved a green flag to start the new route and travelled in the Metro from Sector 1 station of Gandhinagar to GIFT city.
Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat and Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel accompanied the prime minister on his metro journey, during which he interacted with students and other passengers.
As per a government release, part one of phase II spans up to 21 kilometres, covering eight new stations initially, providing efficient transportation services.
The project, developed by the Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation (GMRC) in collaboration with the state and Central governments, will expand the metro network, linking key locations between Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar, such as GNLU, PDEU, Gift City, Raysan, Randesan, Dholakuva, Infocity and Sector-1, it said.
The new phase from Motera to Gandhinagar's Sector 1 will connect crucial hubs such as GIFT City, facilitating easy access for professionals, students, and tourists.
The total project cost for phase II was Rs 5,384 crore, with funding secured through loans from international agencies like AFD and KfW.
The extended route dramatically reduces the travel time between Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar. For instance, commuters can travel between APMC and GIFT City in under an hour at Rs 35.
Ahmedabad city has two metro corridors. With this extension of the Metro from Ahmedabad to Gandhinagar, a major connectivity problem between the twin cities has been resolved.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)