Prime Minister(PM) Narendra Modi visited Pune, Maharashtra on 1st August 2023. He flagged off the Pune metro trains and inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of various development projects.
- He was also conferred with the Lokmanya Tilak National Award 2023.
PM Modi conferred with Lokmanya Tilak National Award
i.PM Narendra Modi was conferred the Lokmanya Tilak National Award 2023 by the Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust, which comes with a memento and citation, in appreciation for his exceptional leadership and his work promoting patriotism among citizens.
- It comes up with a memento, citation and cash reward of Rs 1 lakh.
- He decided to donate the award money of Rs 1 lakh to the National Mission for Clean Ganga.
ii.The award was constituted by the Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust in 1983 to honour the legacy of Lokmanya Tilak on August 1 every year, to mark the death anniversary of Bal Gangadhar Tilak.
iii.The award is conferred upon those who have worked towards the development and upliftment of the nation and who have left a significant impact on the progress of the country.
iv.He was the 41st recipient of this award. The former recipients of the award include eminent personalities like Pranab Mukherjee, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Indira Gandhi, Manmohan Singh, NR Narayana Murthy, and E Sreedharan, among others.
Note:
In 2022, Tessy Thomas, popularly known as India’s missile woman was conferred the Lokmanya Tilak National Award.
About Bal Gangadhar Tilak:
i.Bal Gangadhar Tilak born on 23th July 1856 in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra and died on 1st August 1920.
ii.He has earned titles include ‘Lokmanya Tilak’(Beloved Leader of the People), ‘The father of Indian unrest’, ‘The Maker of Modern India’.
iii.Tilak’s famous slogan was ‘Swarajya is my birthright and I shall have it’.
iv.He founded the Indian Home Rule League in 1914 and participated in various indian freedom movements.
v.His notable books include ‘Gita Rahasya’ and the ‘Arctic home of the Vedas’.
Inauguration of metro lines:
i.PM Modi flagged off metro trains which marks the inauguration of services on completed sections of the two corridors of Pune Metro Phase I.
- These sections running from Phugewadi station to Civil Court station, and from Garware College station to Ruby Hall Clinic station.
- The Civil Court metro station on route is one of the deepest metro stations in India. The deepest point is at 33.1 meter(m).
ii.The Chhatrapati Sambhaji Udyan and Deccan Gymkhana metro stations have a distinct design that resembles the headgear worn by warriors of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, commonly known as “Mavala Pagadi.”
- The Shivaji Nagar underground Metro station has an unique design that looks inspired of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s forts.
Note: Since April 2023, Kolkata Metro network’s Howrah station, 33 meters below the surface, held the record as “the deepest station was in India”.
Waste to Energy Plant:
He dedicated the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation’s (PCMC) Waste to Energy Plant. It was developed at a cost of approximately Rs 300 crores and will consume approximately 2.5 lakh Metric Tonnes(MT) of trash yearly to generate power.
Houses under PMAY:
i.He handed over more than 1,280 houses constructed by PCMC under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana(PMAY).
ii.He also handed over more than 2,650 PMAY houses constructed by Pune Municipal Corporation.
iii.He laid the foundation stone of around 1,190 PMAY houses to be constructed by PCMC and over 6,400 houses constructed by Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority.
Recent relates news:
On February 12, 2023, PM Narendra Modi visited Rajasthan and inaugurated the 246-kilometer (km) Delhi-Dausa-Lalsot stretch of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway.This Delhi-Mumbai Expressway would be India’s longest Expressway spanning 1,386 km.
About Maharashtra:
Chief Minister – Eknath Sambhaji Shinde
Governor – Ramesh Bais
Dances – Dangari Gaja, Povadas Dance,Lavani Dance
