CHENNAI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Poonamallee–Vadapalani stretch of Chennai Metro Rail’s phase II project on Sunday and launch development projects worth more than Rs. 13,000 crore, covering transport, highways, railways, ports, petroleum and research.
As part of his Metro programme, Modi will undertake a train ride between Porur Bypass and Poonamallee Bypass and back around 11.30 am. He will subsequently visit the Jalakandeswarar temple and the Brain Centre at Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M) before launching the projects around 1.30 pm.
The approximately 15-km elevated Metro stretch, part of corridor 4 or the Yellow Line, has been built at a cost of around ₹4,900 crore. It comprises 11 stations, connecting Poonamallee Bypass and Vadapalani, improving connectivity for commuters in Chennai’s western suburbs.
The corridor features a 3.7-km, double-decker structure and advanced signalling systems designed to support driverless operations.
The stations are Poonamallee Bypass, Poonamallee Bus Stand, Poonamallee Government Hospital, Karayanchavadi, Kumananchavadi, Kattupakkam, Iyyappanthangal, Thelliyaragaram, Porur Bypass, Porur Junction and Vadapalani.
The Chennai Metro Rail Limited’s (CMRL) said passenger services will commence at 4 pm on Sunday and operate in both directions until 9 pm. From Monday, regular services will run from 7 am to 9 pm.
Trains will operate every 10 minutes during peak hours on weekdays and Saturdays, and every 15 minutes during non-peak hours.
On Sundays and public holidays, services will run every 15 minutes throughout the operating period, CMRL said in a statement.
The opening of the elevated section is expected to provide an alternative to road transport for commuters travelling along the Poonamallee–Porur–Vadapalani corridor, where residential growth and daily traffic have increased demand for public transport.
The new stations will provide Metro access to residential neighbourhoods, commercial areas and key locations, including Poonamallee government hospital. The connection at Vadapalani will also enable passengers to access the existing Metro network, improving connectivity with other parts of Chennai.
The commissioning of the section marks a step in the phased rollout of phase II, which is intended to expand the city’s rapid-transit network and improve public transport connectivity beyond the existing corridors.
The Prime Minister will also inaugurate and lay the foundation stone for national highway projects worth around Rs. 3,700 crore, including the four-laning of the Vadugapatti–Therkuvenganallur section of NH 744, a of the Madurai Ring Road on NH 744A and a proposed four-lane bypass at Tiruvarur on NH 83.
Railway projects worth more than Rs. 750 crore will be dedicated to the nation. These include the Karaikal–Peralam railway line, three rail flyovers in and around Coimbatore and the redevelopment of five Amrit stations at Palani, Vellore Cantonment, Ambasamudram, Paramakudi and Namakkal.
Port infrastructure projects at Chennai, V.O. Chidambaranar and Kamarajar ports are also on the agenda to expand cargo-handling capacity and improve logistics. Works at Chennai port include a paved storage yard, four export-import godowns, an upgraded cruise terminal and a seafarers’ club.
Modi will lay the foundation stone for a Rs. 1,620-crore group II/III lube oil base stocks project at Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited’s Manali refinery. The facility is expected to have an annual production capacity of 270,000 tonnes.
At IIT-M, he will dedicate the Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre to the nation and launch a global mission to map more than 100 human brains at cellular resolution across the lifespan. He will also release C-Stroke, an atlas containing more than 1,000 annotated microscopic sections of a stroke-affected brain.
The Prime Minister will conclude his engagements by attending the golden jubilee celebrations of Jaigopal Garodia Hindu Vidyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Chennai around 3 pm and addressing the gathering.
The Metro inauguration marks a significant milestone in the phased implementation of Chennai Metro’s phase II network, which is intended to extend rapid transit connectivity to more neighbourhoods and provide an alternative to road transport along the rapidly developing western corridor.
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