Governor of West Bengal CV Anand Bose ji, my colleagues in the Union Cabinet, Shantanu Thakur ji, Ravneet Singh ji, Sukanta Majumdar ji, Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Shuvendu Adhikari ji, my colleague in Parliament, Shomik Bhattacharya ji, other public representatives present here, ladies and gentlemen,

Today once again I have got the opportunity to accelerate the development of West Bengal. Just now I have returned after enjoying the Kolkata Metro from Noapara to Jai Hind Biman Bandar. During this time, I also got the opportunity to talk to a lot of friends. Everyone is happy that Kolkata's public transport is really becoming modern now. Today, the foundation stone of the six-lane elevated Kona Expressway has also been laid here. Many congratulations to the people of Kolkata and entire West Bengal for all these projects worth thousands of crores of rupees.

Friends, 

Our cities like Kolkata are a rich identity of both India's history and our future. Today, when India is moving towards becoming the third largest economy of the world, the role of these cities like Dum Dum, Kolkata is very big. Therefore, the message of today's program is larger than the inauguration of the metro and the foundation stone laying of the highway. This event is a testimony to how today's India is transforming its cities. Today, efforts are being made for green mobility in Indian cities, the number of electric charging points and electric buses is being continuously increased, efforts are being made to convert waste to wealth, to generate electricity from the waste generated from the city, metro facilities are increasing, the metro network is expanding. Today everyone is proud to hear that the world's third largest metro network is now in India. Before 2014, the metro route in the country was only 250 kilometers. Today the metro route in the country has become more than a thousand kilometers long. The metro has also expanded continuously in Kolkata. Even today, about 14 kilometers of new lines are being added to the metro rail network of Kolkata. 7 new stations are being added to Kolkata Metro. All these works are going to enhance the Ease of Living and Ease of Travel of the people of Kolkata.

Friends, 

21st century India also needs a 21st century transport system. That is why today we are developing modern transport facilities in the country, from rail to road, from metro to airport, and are also connecting them with each other. That is, along with transporting people from one city to another, our effort is to provide them seamless transport near their homes. And we also see a glimpse of this here in the multi-modal connectivity of Kolkata. Like today the country's busiest railway stations like Howrah and Sealdah are now connected with the metro. This means that the travel between the stations which earlier took one and a half hour, will now take just a few minutes through the metro. Similarly, Howrah Station subway is also ensuring multimodal connectivity. Earlier, one had to take a long detour to catch a train from Eastern Railway or South Eastern Railway. After the construction of this subway, the time taken for interchange will be reduced. From today, Kolkata Airport has also been connected to the metro. This means that it will now be easier to reach the airport from far-flung parts of the city.

Friends, 

The Government of India is making every possible effort for the development of West Bengal. Today, West Bengal has joined those states of the country where 100% electrification of railways has been done. For a long time, there was a demand for a MEMU train between Purulia and Howrah. The Government of India has also fulfilled this demand of the public. Today, 9 Vande Bharat trains are running on different routes of West Bengal, apart from this, 2 Amrit Bharat trains are also running for all of you.

Friends, 

In the last 11 years, many major highway projects have been completed here by the Government of India. Work is underway on many projects. When the six-lane Kona Expressway is completed, it will also improve the connectivity of the port. This connectivity will strengthen the foundation for a better future for Kolkata and West Bengal. That's all for now.

Friends, 

In a while, a public meeting is going to be held nearby, in that meeting, there will be a detailed discussion with all of you on the development and future of West Bengal, and a lot more will happen, so many people are waiting there, I end my speech here. Best wishes to all of you! Thank you!

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MJPS/VJ/SS