Bhubaneswar, Apr 17: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday arrived in Bhubaneswar to lay foundation stones and inaugurate development projects worth Rs 4,000 crore, as part of a major infrastructure push in Odisha.

According to Odisha BJP President Manmohan Samal, foundation stones for 25 projects worth Rs 4,000 crore will be laid and inaugurated. In addition, a declaration for new projects worth another Rs 4,000 crore will also be made.

On Wednesday, Gadkari chaired a meeting with Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The meeting focused on integrating road safety into the school education system.

In a post on X, the Union Minister shared statistics about road accidents and wrote, "In 2023 alone, over 11,000 lives were lost near school and institutional areas, including more than 10,000 children under the age of 18. This alarming statistic demands urgent action."

He further said, "With the active support of the Ministry of Education, we are set to expand the Sadak Suraksha Abhiyaan to schools across India, aiming to sensitise our future generations about road safety--a concern of national importance."

The meeting also stressed the need to create Safe School Zones, enforce strict safety protocols during school hours, and ensure that school buses and vans follow all safety norms.

Earlier, on April 14, while attending an event in Mumbai, Gadkari said that India can become a 'Vishwaguru' only by building international-standard infrastructure.

"If we want to develop our country, if we want to make our country a Vishwaguru, if we want to make our country the third largest economy in the world, if we want to make our country a five billion dollar economy which our Prime Minister wants to fulfill, the first requirement is to build international standard infrastructure in the country," Gadkari said at 78th Vasant Vyakhyanmala organized by Amar Hind Mandal.

He added that if India wants to make our country 'Vishwaguru, 'we have to import less, and exports should be increased, trying to bring logistics costs on a single digit.

(ANI)

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