Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 30 launched, dedicated and laid the foundation stones for development projects worth more than Rs 14,000 crore in Banaskantha, Gujarat, while also flagging off two rail services connecting Ahmedabad and northern Gujarat with other parts of the state and country.
The rail services launched during the event were the Ahmedabad (Sabarmati)-Varanasi Express and the Mehsana-Becharaji-Sabarmati MEMU service, according to a report by Dinamalar. The services add a passenger connectivity component to a wider package of projects announced for Gujarat, although details of the individual development works were not provided in the report.
The Mehsana-Becharaji-Sabarmati MEMU is linked to daily regional movement across northern Gujarat and the Sabarmati-Ahmedabad area. MEMU services are used for short- and medium-distance commuting, allowing passengers to travel between employment, education and commercial centres without relying solely on road transport. The report did not specify the frequency, timetable, fares or operational details of the service.
The Ahmedabad-Sabarmati-Varanasi Express connects Gujarat with Varanasi through a long-distance rail service. The report identified the service as one of the launches at the event but did not provide its route schedule, number of coaches or journey duration.
Alongside the infrastructure announcements, the Prime Minister released the 24th instalment of the PM-Kisan scheme. The report said that Rs 18,680 crore was transferred at Rs 2,000 each to 9.34 crore farmers. In his address, Modi referred to the transfer as involving more than Rs 18,000 crore credited to the bank accounts of 10 crore farmers.
The figures cited in the report differ between the stated instalment total and the broader number of farmers mentioned in the speech. The report also said that more than 50 lakh farmers in Gujarat had benefited from the PM-Kisan scheme and that Rs 50 crore had been credited to farmers’ bank accounts in Banaskantha district.
Modi said several initiatives aimed at women, children, farmers and livestock owners had been launched or taken up for foundation laying during the event. He also said that the government had spent about Rs 16 lakh crore to shield farmers from the impact of higher fertiliser prices amid global uncertainty.
In his address, the Prime Minister said wheat and rice farmers had received a combined Rs 24 lakh crore through minimum support price payments over the past 12 years. He also stated that farmers had received more than Rs 2 lakh crore in compensation under crop insurance schemes during the same period. These figures were presented as part of the government’s record on agricultural support.
The event therefore combined transport infrastructure announcements with direct agricultural transfers and welfare-related initiatives. The immediate next steps for the rail services will be their scheduled operation, while the individual development projects will move through their respective implementation stages. The report did not provide project-wise costs, completion timelines or departmental responsibilities.
