PM Modi Inaugurates ₹21,800 Crore Pune Metro Expansion
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for Pune Metro projects worth approximately ₹21,800 crore through video conferencing. The projects include the inauguration of the Hinjawadi to Shivajinagar corridor, which provides connectivity to a major IT hub, and a new line connecting old and new parts of Pune city. The Prime Minister emphasized that enhanced metro connectivity will boost Pune's development as a hub for IT, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, startups, innovation, and manufacturing.
The expansion reflects India's broader metro network growth, which has reached nearly 1,200 kilometers across 26 cities, serving over one crore daily commuters, making it among the top three metro networks globally. In Maharashtra specifically, metro infrastructure has expanded from 10-11 kilometers to nearly 175 kilometers operational, with over 680 kilometers under construction representing an investment exceeding ₹2.5 lakh crore. The newly inaugurated corridor was constructed under a Public-Private Partnership model, demonstrating collaborative development efforts.
PM Modi highlighted India's dual achievements as the world's fastest-growing economy and fastest poverty reducer, noting that a World Bank report indicates 50 crore citizens were lifted from extreme poverty within 10-12 years. He connected economic growth with poverty reduction through direct benefit transfers, infrastructure investments in roads, rail, airports, metros, utilities, and welfare deliveries including houses, toilets, tap water connections, and cooking gas connections that save time and generate additional income opportunities.
The government has established a ₹1 lakh crore Urban Challenge Fund to transform hundreds of smaller cities into active growth hubs, with the Prime Minister urging local bodies and private sector partners to participate in this mission. The address also acknowledged severe drought conditions affecting farming families in Maharashtra, with the government expressing solidarity and noting the provision of advance assistance by the state government and transfer of PM Kisan funds to support affected farmers.