India achieved tremendous progress in the infrastructure sector in 2022. The availability and caliber of services have significantly improved as a result of the nation's major investments in transportation, energy, and telecommunications sectors.
The 75-week countdown to our 75th anniversary of independence began on March 12, 2021, and the official journey of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav will end a year on August 15, 2023.
India created and expanded its network of roads, trains, and airports to boost connectivity. It also built two mega monuments, that the country is proud of, in the last one year.
Here are the biggest projects that Indians saw in the years 2022 and 2023.
Aviation
Manohar International Airport:
Manohar International Airport is an international airport located in the state of Goa. It functions as the second airport in Goa, serving North Goa and the neighboring districts of Karnataka and Maharashtra. Its construction cost is Rs. 3,000 crore. The airport was renamed Manohar International Airport after former Defence Minister and Goa’s 10th Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar, on
December 11, 2022. The inaugural flight was operated by IndiGo on January 5, 2023, when it began domestic operations.
Donyi Polo Airport: Donyi Polo Airport, Arunachal Pradesh’s first greenfield airport, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 19, 2022. This airport increases the overall number of airports in the Northeast to 16, making it the third operational airport in Arunachal Pradesh and the first in the state capital, Itanagar.
The new airport has a 2,300-metre runway and can accommodate large, wide-body aircraft such as the Boeing 747. PM Narendra Modi had laid the foundation in February 2019. The work was finished in record time despite the pandemic and other difficulties. Over 690 acres of land were used to create Donyi Polo Airport, which cost more than 640 crore.
Rajkot International Airport: On July 27, 2023, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the international airport in Rajkot. According to a government release, it is the state’s first greenfield airport and cost Rs 1,405 crore to construct. Modern technology and sustainable components are combined in this airport. The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for the international airport on October 7, 2017, during the Bhoomipujan event in Hirasar village, near Chotila. The airport terminal’s design is influenced by Rajkot’s cultural life.
Roads
Samruddhi Mahamarg:
Officially known as Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg, Mumbai-Nagpur Expressway is 701 kilometers long and six lanes wide. It travels across ten districts and 390 villages of Maharashtra. Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially opened the Samruddhi Mahamarg’s first phase in December 2022, spanning a distance of 520 kilometers from Nagpur to the temple town of Shirdi in the Ahmednagar district. On May 27, 2023, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis inaugurated the second phase of the Mumbai-Nagpur Samruddhi Mahamarg.
Bundelkhand Expressway: On July 16, 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened the 296-kilometer-long Bundelkhand Expressway, which spans through seven districts of Uttar Pradesh and was built at a cost of approximately Rs 14,850 crore. On February 29, 2020, Modi laid the first stone for the expressway’s construction, and it was finished in approximately 28 months. Seven districts — Chitrakoot, Banda, Mahoba, Hamirpur, Jalaun, Auraiya, and Etawah — are traversed by the four-lane expressway. It also has the potential to be expanded to six lanes.
Trans–Haryana Expressway: The Trans-Haryana Highway (NH-152D) is a 227-kilometer-long, 6-lane-wide greenfield access-controlled highway connecting the cities of Ambala and Narnaul in the state of Haryana. The highway links Surana village on NH-148B in Mahendragarh district with Gangheri village (on NH-152) in Kurukshetra district, close to Ismailabad. The cost of this expressway is Rs 5,108 crore. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is developing the Bharatmala project, which has a 70-meter right of way, 122 bridges and underpasses, and 1,36,000 trees planted on both sides.
Railways
Vande Bharat Express:
The Vande Bharat Express, a short-distance train service, known as Train 18, was planned by the RDSO and built by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF). 16-coach Vande Bharat train costs around Rs. 115 crore. On July 7, 2023, PM Narendra Modi officially flagged off two new Vande Bharat Express trains from Gorakhpur, bringing the total number of operating Vande Bharat lines to 25. These two trains will run between Jodhpur and Sabarmati and Gorakhpur and Lucknow. These are reducing travel time between cities and allowing passengers to take in the country’s splendor through giant glass windows. Vande Bharat Express has unquestionably been a huge success.
Ayodhya-Varanasi - Railway Electrification: The Varanasi-Ayodhya-Lucknow line is a railway line that connects Varanasi and Lucknow in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Following its extension to Bareilly, Moradabad, and Saharanpur, the main line became known as the "main line" of the Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway. The Allahabad-Ayodhya line, a significant branch line that virtually intersects the main line at a right angle, is listed here. The Northern Railway has administrative control over the main line, while the North Central Railway has administrative control over some of the branch lines.
Modern Monuments
Statue of Equality:
The Statue of Equality (Ramanucharjya Statue) is an homage to Ramanucharjya, 11th-century vaishnavite, philosopher, and social reformer. It is one of the highest statues in India, with a height of 216 feet. It is situated in Telangana in the Ranga Reddy district just outside of Hyderabad. The statue is a symbol of nonviolence and equality. It is made of bronze and shows the philosopher sitting down his hands folded in namaskar.
New Parliament House:
On December 10, 2020, India’s Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, laid the foundation stone for the new Sansad Bhawan. On May 28, 2023, the New Parliament Building was officially inaugurated. The New Parliament Building is part of the Central Vista Project, and the total cost of the project is anticipated to be Rs 20,000 crore, according to the Union Government. The new Sansad Bhawan, is significantly larger than the old one and is spread across an area of 65,000 square meters.
