The Prime Minister (PM) of India, Narendra Modi, visited Bengaluru in Karnataka, to inaugurate the second terminal of Kempegowda International Airport, to flag off South India’s first Vande Bharat Express & Kashi Darshana train at KSR railway station, and to unveil the 108-foot-high bronze statue of Bengaluru founder Nadaprabhu Kempegowda.
PM Inaugurates Terminal 2 of Kempegowda International Airport at Bengaluru, Karnataka
PM Narendra Modi has inaugurated the newly built Terminal 2 of the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) in Bengaluru, Karnataka, which is built at an investment of Rs. 5,000 crores.
- The terminal, nicknamed “Terminal in a Garden,” is an eco-friendly structure built using bamboo and can accommodate 2.5 crore passengers per year.
Significance
- The KIA Terminal 2 is intended as a tribute to the Garden city of Bengaluru, and the passenger experience is designed to be a “walk in the garden.”
- The Four guiding principles that inspired the design and architecture of Terminal 2 are, “Terminal in a Garden,” “Sustainability,” “Technology,” and “Art & Culture.”
Key Points:
i.Based on the sustainability initiatives, Terminal 2 at KIA will be the world’s largest terminal to be pre-certified platinum by the United States Green Building Council (US GBC) before operations begin.
- With its 100% use of renewable energy across the campus, this airport has set a standard for sustainability.
ii.The theme “Naurasa” integrates all of the commissioned artworks at Terminal 2 and symbolises Karnataka’s heritage and culture, as well as the broader Indian culture.
iii.The terminal has an area of 2,55,645 square metres, and passengers will pass via green walls, hanging gardens, and outdoor gardens created in India with indigenous technology.
PM Modi Flags Off South India’s 1st Vande Bharat Express from Bengaluru, Karnataka
PM Narendra Modi has flagged off the ‘Chennai-Mysuru Vande Bharat Express’ train at the Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna (KSR) Railway Station in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
- This is the first Vande Bharat Express train in South India and the fifth such train in India.
This Vande Bharat Express train will improve connectivity between the industrial hub Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and the popular tourist destination Mysuru (Karnataka) via the technology and startup hub Bengaluru (Karnataka).
PM Flags Off The ‘Bharat Gaurav Kashi Darshan’ Train at KSR Railway Station in Bengaluru, Karnataka
The PM also flagged off the “Bharat Gaurav Kashi Darshan Train” at the Bengaluru KSR railway station.
- Karnataka is the first state to operate this train under the Ministry of Railways’ “Bharat Gaurav” train scheme, which is operated by Karnataka’s Muzrai Department.
This train visits holy sites in Uttar Pradesh (UP), including Varanasi, Ayodhya, and Prayagraj.
Key Points
i.The train provides pilgrims with an economical eight-day tour package.
ii.A financial assistance of Rs. 5,000 is given by the Karnataka government to pilgrims on the Kashi Vishwanath Yatra.
- Varanasi, or Benaras (also known as Kashi) in Uttar Pradesh, is one of the world’s oldest living cities and an ultimate pilgrimage destination for Hindus.
Note: The PM also offered floral tributes to the statues of poet Kanakadasa and Maharshi Valmiki at Bengaluru’s Vidhana Soudha.
PM Modi Unveils Statue of Nadaprabhu Kempegowda in Karnataka
PM Narendra Modi unveiled the 108-foot bronze statue of Bengaluru founder Nadaprabhu Kempegowda, labelled as the “Statue of Prosperity.”
- The statue was built to honour Nadaprabhu Kempegowda’s contribution to the development of Bengaluru.
According to the “World Book of Records,” it is the “first and highest bronze statue of a city founder.”
Nadaprabhu Kempegowda
- Bengaluru was established in 1537 by Nadaprabhu Kempegowda, a feudatory ruler of the erstwhile Vijayanagara Empire.
- He is held in high regard, particularly among the Vokkaliga community, which is prevalent in Old Mysuru and other parts of southern Karnataka.
Key Points:
i.The statue, which weighs 218 tonnes (98 tonnes of bronze & 120 tonnes of steel), has been installed at Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport. It has a four-ton sword on it.
ii.The statue was sculpted by renowned sculptor and recipient of the Padma Bhushan awardee Ram Vanji Sutar.
- Sutar was the architect of Gujarat’s “Statue of Unity” of Sardar Vallabhai Patel and Bengaluru’s “Vidhana Soudha” statue of Mahatma Gandhi.
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Paytm Mall of Paytm E-commerce Private Limited (PEPL), became the first app to go live on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The network started beta testing for the public across 16 pin codes in Bengaluru.
About Ministry of Railways:
Union Minister – Ashwini Vaishnaw (Rajya Sabha – Odisha)
Minister of State (MoS) – Danve Raosaheb Dadarao; Darshana Vikram Jardosh
