New Delhi, Sep 26 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Odisha on Saturday to lay the foundation stone and inaugurate multiple development projects worth over Rs 60,000 crore in Jharsuguda, an official statement mentioned on Friday. These projects span across telecommunications, railways, higher education, healthcare, skill development, rural housing sectors, among others. He will also address a public gathering on the occasion. In the field of telecom connectivity, the Prime Minister will commission more than 97,500 mobile 4G towers built at a cost of around Rs 37,000 crore with Swadeshi technology, said the statement. This includes more than 92,600 4G technology sites commissioned by BSNL. Over 18,900 4G sites have been funded under the Digital Bharat Nidhi which will connect around 26,700 unconnected villages in remote, border, and left-wing extremism-affected areas, serving over 20 lakh new subscribers, it said. These towers are solar-powered, making them India’s largest cluster of green telecom sites and a step forward in sustainable infrastructure.

The Prime Minister will lay foundation stone and dedicate to the nation important railway projects that will boost connectivity and regional growth. These include foundation stone for Rail Flyover at Sambalpur–Sarla, dedication to the nation of the doubling of the Koraput–Baiguda line, and the Manabar–Koraput–Gorapur line. These projects will significantly improve freight and passenger movement in Odisha and neighbouring states, strengthening local industries and trade.  On the occasion, the Prime Minister will also flag off the Amrit Bharat Express between Berhampur and Udhna (Surat), providing affordable and comfortable connectivity across states, supporting tourism, creating employment opportunities, and linking key economic districts.

PM Modi will also lay the foundation stones for the expansion of eight IITs —Tirupati, Palakkad, Bhilai, Jammu, Dharwad, Jodhpur, Patna, and Indore — at an investment of around Rs 11,000 crore. The expansion will create capacity for 10,000 new students over the next four years and will establish eight state-of-the-art research parks, thereby strengthening India’s innovation ecosystem and providing a strong push to research and development. The Prime Minister will launch MERITE scheme designed to improve quality, equity, research, and innovation in 275 state engineering and polytechnic institutions across the country, said the statement. He will also launch Odisha Skill Development Project Phase II which will establish World Skill Centres in Sambalpur and Berhampur, covering emerging sectors such as AgriTech, Renewable Energy, Retail, Marine, and Hospitality.

Further, five ITIs will be upgraded into Utkarsh ITIs, 25 ITIs will be developed as Centres of Excellence, and a new Precision Engineering Building will provide advanced technical training. To enhance digital education in the state, PM Modi will dedicate Wi-Fi facilities across 130 higher education institutions, providing free daily data access to benefit more than 2.5 lakh students. Healthcare infrastructure in Odisha will also receive a significant boost during the Prime Minister’s visit. He will lay the foundation stone for the upgradation of MKCG Medical College in Berhampur and VIMSAR in Sambhalpur into world-class super-speciality hospitals.

The upgraded facilities will include enhanced bed capacity, trauma care units, dental colleges, maternal and child care services, and expanded academic infrastructure, ensuring comprehensive health services for the people of Odisha. In addition, the Prime Minister will distribute sanction orders to 50,000 beneficiaries under the Antyodaya Gruha Yojana. The scheme provides 'pucca' houses and financial assistance to vulnerable rural families, including persons with disabilities, widows, individuals suffering from terminal illness, and victims of natural calamities. This initiative reflects the government’s commitment to ensuring social welfare and dignity for the most disadvantaged sections of society.