PM flags off 8 trains to boost connectivity to Statue of Unity

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday flagged off eight trains connecting different partsof the country to Kevadia in Gujarat, via video conferencing.

These trains will connect Kevadia to Varanasi, Dadar,Ahmedabad, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Rewa, Chennai and Pratapnagar.

Modi said these trains will help boost tourism in thetribal region and increase connectivity to the world's talleststatue, the Statue of Unity, which he inaugurated in October2018 on the occasion of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's 143rd birthanniversary.

The Ahmedabad-Kevadia Jan Shatabdi Express, one of theeight trains, has been equipped with the 'Vista-dome touristcoach' which offers large viewing areas with rooftop glassesand seats for passengers.

Modi also inaugurated the DabhoiChandod convertedbroad gauge railway line, ChandodKevadia new broad gauge railline, newly electrified PratapnagarKevadia section and thenew station buildings of Dabhoi, Chandod and Kevadia.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Gujarat Chief MinisterVijay Rupani, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray and his UttarPradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath joined the event via videolink.