Barak Valley tightens security, traffic plan for PM Modi's March-14 visit
Rs 22,000-Cr expressway, Rs 564-Cr flyover to headline PM Modi’s high-stakes Barak Valley visit
Ministers Krishnendu Paul, Kaushilk Rai, Assam DGP along with Chief Secretary Kota during a review visit in Silchar (AT Photo)
Silchar, Feb 25: Preparations for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s March 14 visit to Barak Valley gathered pace on Wednesday, with a high-level coordination meeting held at the Deputy Commissioner’s conference hall to streamline logistics, crowd management and traffic regulation.
Authorities have drawn up a decentralised movement plan to prevent congestion in Silchar town. Under the strategy, attendees from Sribhumi and Hailakandi districts will be routed directly to the venue without entering the town.
Separate traffic arrangements are also being finalised to enable residents of Silchar and adjoining areas to reach the meeting ground in an orderly and decongested manner.
Announcing the details, Cabinet Minister Kaushik Rai, who heads the Barak Valley Development Department, said that a public meeting will be held at the Ramnagar bypass over a 200-bigha site, with arrangements being made to accommodate nearly two lakh people.
During his visit, the Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for the ambitious Panchgram–Silchar high-speed expressway, popularly known as the Silchar–Shillong bypass.
“Sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs 22,000 crore, this project will drastically reduce travel time between Barak Valley and Guwahati to approximately 4.5 hours. It will unlock new economic and logistical opportunities for southern Assam,” Rai said.
In a major urban infrastructure push, the Prime Minister will also lay the foundation for the long-awaited Silchar Flyover, a Rs 564-crore project aimed at easing traffic congestion and modernising the town’s road network.
Chief Secretary Ravi Kota said Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma will accompany the Prime Minister at the Silchar event.
The Prime Minister is also scheduled to lay the foundation stone for the first Agriculture College in Barak Valley, to be established in the Dohalia area of Patharkandi constituency in Sribhumi district.
“The Agriculture College will come up in the Dohalia area of Patharkandi,” Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Minister Krishnendu Paul said.
He, along with Minister Paul, MLA Dipayan Chakraborty, Chief Secretary Ravi Kota, Assam DGP Harmeet Singh, Cachar Deputy Commissioner Aayush Garg and Cachar SSP Partha Pratim Das, inspected the venue and reviewed administrative preparations to ensure smooth execution of the programme.