Ayodhya Gets New Airport, Revamped Railway Station on Saturday; Security Upped for PM's Visit

Massive preparations are underway for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Ayodhya on Saturday, December 30, where he will inaugurate an airport, a redeveloped railway station, flag off two new Amrit Bharat, six new Vande Bharat trains and a couple of other projects.

PM Modi will launch projects worth more than Rs 11,100 crore to revamp civic facilities and develop world-class infrastructure in Ayodhya, where the much-awaited Ram Mandir inauguration will be taking place next month. PM Modi will also inaugurate projects worth over Rs 4,600 crore for other parts of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday.

A thick security blanket is being put in place for PM Modi's Ayodhya visit with deployment of Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and National Security Guards (NSG) among other security forces.

Details on PM Modi's Ayodhya Visit  

-Schedule: According to Prime Minister's Office (PMO), at around 11:15 AM, PM Modi will inaugurate the redeveloped Ayodhya Railway Station and flag off new Amrit Bharat trains and Vande Bharat trains. He will also dedicate several other railway projects to the nation, PMO said.

At around 12:15 PM, the Prime Minister will inaugurate the newly built Ayodhya Airport.  

At around 1 PM, PM Modi will participate in a public programme where he will inaugurate, delicate to nation and lay the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth more than Rs 15,700 crore in the state. "These include projects worth about Rs 11,100 crore for development of Ayodhya and its surrounding areas and projects worth about Rs 4600 crore related to other projects across Uttar Pradesh," PMO said.

-ATS, NSG, Drones Deployed for PM's Visit: Piyush Mordia, Additional Director General of Police, Lucknow Zone said that high-level arrangements have been put in place for PM Modi's security with Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and National Security Guards (NSG) among other forces being deployed.

Mordia said said that a rehearsal of PM Modi's roadshow will be done today to oversee the arrangements. "We are monitoring all areas with drones. To improve the traffic system, a traffic diversion plan has also been made," news agency ANI quoted the ADG as saying.

He said three Deputy inspector general of police (DIG), 17 Superintendent of police (SP), 38 Additional SP, 82 Deputy SP, 90 Inspector, 325 Sub Inspector, 35 Female Sub Inspector, 2000 Constable, 14 Company Pradeshik Armed Constabulary (PAC), six companies of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) will be deployed as part of the security. 

-About Ayodhya Airport: PM Modi will inaugurate Phase 1 of the "state-of-the-art" Ayodhya airport which has been developed at a cost of more than Rs 1,450 crore and on an area of 6,500 sqm. A PMO release said the airport is equipped to serve about 10 lakh passengers annually, adding that the facade of the terminal building depicts the architecture of the upcoming Ram Mandir of Ayodhya.

Official sources said the airport will be named "Maharishi Valmiki International Airport, Ayodhyadham", after the saint who wrote the epic "Ramayana". Valmiki also enjoys a large following, especially among Dalits.

"The interiors of the terminal Building are decorated with local art, paintings & murals depicting the life of Bhagwan Shri Ram. The terminal building of Ayodhya airport is also equipped with various sustainability features like insulated roofing system, LED lighting, rain water harvesting, landscaping with fountains, water treatment plant, sewage treatment plant, solar power plant and many other such features have been provided to meet GRIHA – 5 star ratings," the release said. 

-Revamped Ayodhya Railway Station: PM Modi will inaugurate Phase I of the redeveloped Ayodhya Railway Station – known as Ayodhya Dham Junction Railway Station – developed at a cost of more than Rs 240 crore.

PMO said the three-storey modern railway station building is equipped with all modern features like lifts, escalators, food plazas, shops for puja needs, cloak rooms, child care rooms, waiting halls. "The station building will be ‘accessible for all’ and IGBC certified green station building," PMO said. 

-Amrit Bharat, Vande Bharat trains and Other Rail Projects: At the programme at Ayodhya Dham Junction Railway Station, PM Modi will flag off a new category of superfast passenger trains in the country – the Amrit Bharat Express which are equipped with "push-pull" technology. 

The two Amrit Bharat trains that PM Modi will flag off are: Darbhanga-Ayodhya-Anand Vihar Terminal Amrit Bharat Express and Malda Town-Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminus (Bengaluru) Amrit Bharat Express.

ALSO READ: Amrit Bharat Train, With Key 'Push-pull' Tech, to be Launched by PM Modi from Ayodhya Soon

PM Modi will also flag off six new Vande Bharat Trains: Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-New Delhi Vande Bharat Express, Amritsar-Delhi Vande Bharat Express, Coimbatore-Bangalore Cantt Vande Bharat Express, Mangalore-Madgaon Vande Bharat Express, Jalna-Mumbai Vande Bharat Express and Ayodhya-Anand Vihar Terminal Vande Bharat Express.