PM Modi inaugurates India’s longest cable-stayed bridge Sudarshan Setu in Gujarat’s Dwarka

After performing pooja at the Dwarkadhishji Mukhya Mandir, PM Modi took a stroll on the sealink and waved to fishermen and ferry-boat operators on board their boats.

Modi landed in Jamnagar city late on Saturday evening and led a road show there. After staying for the night in Jamnagar circuit house, PM Modi flew to Bet Dwarka, which is around 160 km away from Jamnagar, on Sunday morning. After landing on the island, which is part of Okha municipality, Modi offered prayers at Shree Dwarkadhishji Mukhya Mandir, a temple of Lord Krishna on Bet Dwarka island. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and senior ministers of the Gujarat government accompanied him.

The sealink, Gujarat’s first, has been constructed by the national highway division in the Roads and Buildings Department of Gujarat. The bridge was constructed as part of National Highway 51 and funded by the Centre.

The 4.77-km-long sealink has a 2.32 km (2,320 metres) bridge section, including a 900 metres (0.90 km) cable-stayed section, the longest in India. The 2.32-km-long superstructure of the bridge is supported by 32 piers, including two towers rising 18 metres above the sea.

The cable-stayed structure will allow navigation of fishing boats and other vessels. The cable-stayed section in Sudarshan Setu is longer than the one in Bandra-Worli Sea Link in Mumbai. Sudarshan Setu has a 1.21-km (1,215 metres) approach on the Bet Dwarka side and a 1.23-km (1,237 metres) approach on the Okha side.

Bet Dwarka is located three kilometres off Okha town, the nearest point in mainland Gujarat. It is part of Okha municipality and has a population of around 10,000. So far, the only means of transport between the island and the mainland was ferry boats. Modi laid the foundation stone for this bridge in October 2017 and the construction started in 2018. Work on the bridge was completed on February 14 this year.

After inaugurating the bridge, PM Modi flew to the temple town Dwarka, around 30 km away. Modi led a roadshow through the town, which culminated at Jagat Mandir, the famous Lord Krishna temple, which is also known as Dwarkadhish Mandir. Modi offered prayers at the temple until late morning. After performing pooja at Dwarkadhish Mandir, Modi is scheduled to address a public meeting in Dwarka at 1 PM.

In the afternoon, PM Modi will fly to Rajkot and inaugurate the permanent campus of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Rajkot. After inaugurating the AIIMS Rajkot campus in Para Pipaliya village on the outskirts of Rajkot, Modi will address a public meeting in the Race Course ground of Rajkot from where he will also inaugurate campuses of AIIMS in Bathinda of Punjab, Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh, Kalyani in West Bengal and Mangalagiri in Andhra Pradesh. In all, the PM will inaugurate or lay the foundation stone of Rs 48,000 crore worth of projects from Rajkot.

PM Modi is also likely to stay for the night in Rajkot on Sunday even as his itinerary for Monday has yet to be made public.