PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ New Tehri
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate the Tehri Dam’s PSP (Pumped Storage Plant) project on Tuesday during his 28th visit to Uttarakhand since became the PM in 2014. Equally significantly, this will mark his 18th visit during Pushkar Singh Dhami’s four-and-a-half-year tenure as chief minister. Preparations are in the final stages, said the State government sources, adding that the 2,400-megawatt Tehri Dam project will generate electricity at its full capacity following its inauguration. This aside, the 1,000-megawatt Tehri Dam and 400-megawatt Koteshwar Dam will also be dedicated to the nation.
During this visit, the PM will inaugurate the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway which is expected to reduce the travel time between the two cities by at least 2. 5 hours. Importantly, upon becoming the PM in May 2014, Modi arrived in Rishikesh on September 11, 2015, on his first visit to Uttarakhand. He visited the Dayanand Saraswati Ashram and met his guru, Dayanand Giri, to inquire about his well-being. Since becoming the PM, Modi has visited Kedarnath and Badrinatath five times: he says he has deep attachment with these revered shrines.
Similarly, the Prime Minister’s visit to Adi Kailash in Pithoragarh district has enormously boosted the religious tourism potential of the place, deemed sacred in Hindu mythology. This witnesses pilgrim footfalls to the tune of thousands since his visit. Further, in March last year, he visited Mukhba, the winter abode of Mother Ganga in Uttarkashi district, and delivered a winter travel message, promoting year-round tourism in the state.
