Mumbai Live Trans Harbour Link: The prime minister today launched the 27th National Youth Festival at Tapovan Ground in Nashik, Maharashtra, urging Indian youth to use local products and avoid drugs.
“From our country’s sages and saints to the common man, everybody has always prioritised youth power.” Sri Aurobindo was of the opinion if India was to attain her aspirations, the youth of India needed to think for themselves. Swami Vivekananda once observed, “India’s hopes rest on the character and commitment of her youth,” the Prime Minister said.
During the prime minister’s journey to Maharashtra this afternoon, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced projects totaling well over Rs 30,500 crore.
“He first unveiled the Rs 17,840 crore Atal Bihari Vajpayee Sewri-Nhava Sheva Atal Setu, also known as the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, which will shorten the distance between Mumbai and the satellite city of Navi Mumbai from several hours to 15-20 minutes, boosting development in the region, which includes a mega port and an upcoming international airport”, a report said.
He was speaking to the residents of Navi Mumbai after the Atal Setu Bridge was inaugurated.
“In a developed India, there will be facilities for everyone, prosperity for everyone, speed, and progress for everyone.” Distances will be minimised in developed India, and every corner of the country would be connected. Everything, whether it is life or livelihood, will continue unabated” he said.
“PM Modi, who lay the foundation stone for the six-lane bridge in December 2016, officially opened MTHL on Friday during his visit to the state. The Prime Minister also lay the groundwork for a 9.2km underground road tunnel linking the Eastern Motorway in eastern Mumbai to Marine Drive in south Mumbai”, report mentioned.
In a post on X, Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who attended the occasion alongside chief minister Eknath Shinde and colleague Ajit Pawar, called it “historic.”
Sanjay Mukherjee, commissioner of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), said on Thursday that the bridge would be India’s first open road tolling project on an experimental basis.
“We will not use barricades for open road tolling.” There is usually a boom barrier; the vehicle’s fast tag is scanned, and it then passes. The rapid tag reader is advanced in this situation; a photograph of the car is captured from a distance, and the boom barrier does not come down. “We will monitor this for a month and then decide whether to implement a hybrid model of open road tolling and traditional tolling,” the commissioner said on Thursday.
Mukherjee stated that over 400 cameras were mounted on the bridge to continue surveillance, in addition to infrared cameras to detect speeding even in fog or limited visibility. Except for the curves, the speed limit has been set at 100kmph.
The Sewri police department will be granted authority over the first 10.8 kilometres of the bridge, with the Uran station covering the remainder.
Every day, 70,000 vehicles are projected to use the MTHL. According to MMRDA traffic forecasts, 133,000 vehicles per day are scheduled to utilise the Sewri-Shivaji Nagar/Chirle interchange by 2032, increasing to 200,000 vehicles by 2042.