Narendra Modi in Bihar: PM arrives in Patna, will address 20,000 Swachh Bharat volunteers in East Champaran district

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Bihar on Tuesday to address 20,000 ‘Swachh Bharat’ volunteers in East Champaran district’s Motihari town and launch key development projects. He was received by Governor Satyapal Malik and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan and several senior BJP leaders in Patna. Modi reached Patna in an Indian Air Force aircraft and will go to Motihari by a helicopter, IANS reported. “The foundation stones for key development projects will be laid and vital projects will also dedicated to the nation. This includes the Motijheel Project, the Bettiah Nagar Parshid water supply scheme under AMRUT among others,” the Prime Minister’s Office tweeted on Monday. Important development works relating to River Ganga will also be inaugurated.

Patna: PM Narendra Modi arrives in Bihar, he will lay foundation stone for various projects in the state and speak at a Swacch Bharat Abhiyan event. He was received upon arrival by Governor Satyapal Malik and CM Nitish Kumar pic.twitter.com/y3MC7kw0Hc

— ANI (@ANI) April 10, 2018

The prime minister’s visit and address to the ‘Swachhagrahis’ (ambassadors of cleanliness) is a part of the concluding celebration of Champaran Satyagraha centenary launched by the Bihar government in April, 2017. He is expected to make the speech at 1 pm on Tuesday. Mahatma Gandhi had set off on his Champaran Satyagraha in 1917 in protest against atrocities on Indigo planters. From Motihari, Modi will also will lay the foundation stone for four sewerage projects in Patna. The sewerage projects are worth Rs 1,111.56 crore. “These four projects together will create new sewage treatment plant (STP) capacity of 60 million litres per day and lay the sewer network of 376.12 kilometre in Saidpur and Pahari sewerage zones of Patna,” the release said. The expected sewage load for Patna by 2035 is estimated to be 320 million litres per day. Modi will flag off a new bi-weekly train Humsafar Express connecting Katihar to New Delhi, launch electrification work of Motihari-Muzaffarpur rail line and doubling of Muzaffarpur-Narkatiyaganj railway track. The prime minister will also flag off India's first 12,000 horsepower electric locomotive , a collaboration between India and France, in Madhepura.

Tomorrow, the first phase of the Madhepura Electric Locomotive Factory will be dedicated to the nation. The Champaran Humsafar Express and the first 12,000 HP freight electric locomotive will also be flagged off on the occasion.

— PMO India (@PMOIndia) April 9, 2018

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A sprawling tent-city, ‘Swachhagram’, has been set up to accommodate the volunteers from other states. The theme of the centenary celebrations of the Champaran Satyagrah is “Satyagrah se Swachhagrah”. With inputs from agencies