Visakhapatnam: In a significant step to give a new impetus to the development of Andhra Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated the Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport at Bhogapuram in Vizianagaram district.
At the same time, he launched several important development projects worth over Rs 17,900 crore in the state. The state-of-the-art greenfield airport, built under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model at a cost of over Rs 5,640 crore, has a capacity to handle about 60 lakh passengers annually.
This will further strengthen Andhra Pradesh’s air connectivity and is expected to give a boost to tourism, trade, investment and job creation. At the same time, Prime Minister Modi inspected the passenger terminal of the airport.
Andhra Pradesh Governor S. Abdul Nazeer, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and Civil Aviation Minister K. Ram Mohan Naidu were present on the occasion.
Use of cutting-edge technologies at the airport:
The Bhogapuram airport, which was inaugurated today, has been equipped with cutting-edge technologies including artificial intelligence (AI), biometric passenger processing, automated baggage handling, building information modeling and smart operations monitoring system.
Priority has been given to environmental protection, with a 5 MW solar power plant, rainwater harvesting, energy efficient systems, electric vehicle charging system and waste management facilities. The architecture of the airport terminal is inspired by the traditional thatched cottages of Andhra Pradesh, the natural beauty of the Araku Valley and the movement of flying fish.
Andhra Pradesh’s first semiconductor unit laid:
Prime Minister Modi also laid the foundation stone for Andhra Pradesh’s first semiconductor manufacturing unit. The project is being developed by ASIP Technologies Pvt Ltd in partnership with APACT of South Korea.
The unit, with an investment of over Rs 460 crore, aims to produce about 9.6 crore semiconductor chips annually. This will create more skilled employment opportunities and strengthen the supporting industrial system for the semiconductor sector.
Renewable energy sector also strengthened:
Prime Minister Modi laid the foundation stone for the Kurnool-IV Renewable Energy Zone Transmission System-Phase-1, costing about Rs 5,550 crore. Transmission projects related to Kurnool’s wind and solar power zones and Anantapuram and Kurnool’s solar power zones were also launched. The main objective of these projects is to integrate a large amount of green power into the country’s power grid.
Highway connectivity also gets a major boost:
National Highway projects worth over Rs 1,880 crore were also launched during the event. These include four-lane controlled access greenfield highways between Recharla-Guruvayagudem and Guruvayagudem-Devarapalli and the Tadipatri bypass projects of NH-67.
In addition, the foundation stone for the construction of a high-level bridge at Lingasamudram on the Penchalakona-Yerpedu section of NH-565 was also laid. These projects will not only reduce traffic congestion but also improve road safety. The travel time between Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad is also expected to be reduced.
Overall, the Bhogapuram program has provided a major boost to the aviation, semiconductor, renewable energy, and road infrastructure sectors in Andhra Pradesh, and is expected to give a new impetus to the state’s industrial growth and job creation.