Bhubaneswar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit Odisha in the third week of June to inaugurate four projects in Paradip, sources said.
The Prime Minister’s Office, however, is yet to make a formal announcement regarding the schedule and itinerary.
Meanwhile, the Paradip Port authorities have initiated preparation for the event, which will be held at the Gopabandhu Stadium in the town. A new helipad was reportedly being constructed ahead of the PM’s programme. Around 2,000 people are expected to attend the event.
The scheduled visit will be his second one to the port town. He had inaugurate an oil refinery of the Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) in 2016.
Notably, plans are afoot to transform Odisha’s Paradip port into a world-class modern port, which will have the capability to handle capsize vessels, at a cost of over Rs 3,000 crore, in line with PM Modi’s vision of the development of Eastern States. This includes the development of the new Western Dock on the build, operate and transfer basis at a cost of Rs 2,040 crore and capital dredging by the selected concessionaire at a cost of Rs 352.13 crore; and the investment of Paradip Port will be to the tune of Rs 612.50 crore towards providing Common Supporting Project Infrastructure.
Apart from dedicating important projects, this visit assumes significance for forthcoming presidential polls in July. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) is expected to play a crucial role with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at least 1.2 per cent (roughly 13,000 votes) away from the majority mark for its candidate to sail through. The BJD with 112 MLAs and 12 MPs has about 3 per cent of the total vote value of about 1,093,347.
It is worth mentioning here that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had called on PM Modi in New Delhi on May 30. The meeting at the South Block lasted for around 30 minutes.
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