Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday handed over the indigenously developed Arjun Main Battle Tank Mark 1A to the Indian Army here and said that India believes in peace but will protect its sovereignty at all costs.
PM Modi handed over the tank to Army Chief General M.M. Naravane.
He accepted a salute by the state-of-the-art tank, indigenously designed, developed and manufactured by the Defence Research and Development Organisation’s Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment here.
Fifteen academic institutions, eight labs and several MSMEs were also involved in the project. The Defence Ministry had recently cleared the induction of 118 Arjun Mark 1A tanks into the Indian Army, costing around Rs 8,400 crore.
The PM said that Tamil Nadu is already a leading manufacturing hub of India and now he sees the state evolving as the tank manufacturing hub.
Stating that one of the two defence corridors is in Tamil Nadu, Modi said it already received an investment commitment of over Rs 8,100 crore.
“A tank made in Tamil Nadu will be used to defend our borders in northern India. This shows the united nature of India,” he said. Modi said India believes in peace but it will protect its sovereignty at all costs. He recited Bharatiyar poem in Tamil to highlight the importance of defence projects in the country.
He also paid homage to CRPF personnel who lost their lives in the terror attack at Pulwama two years ago. “No Indian can forget this day. We pay homage to all the martyrs we lost in that attack,” he said.
The PM also mentioned about the support provided to displaced Tamils in Sri Lanka and the Tamil fishermen captured by Sri Lanka. He declared that there are currently no fishermen in Sri Lankan custody.
Later, at a programme held at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the Prime Minister either inaugurated or laid the foundation stone for a slew of infrastructure projects. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam felicitated Modi, who also paid tributes to late Chief Ministers J. Jayalalithaa and M. Karunanidhi.
The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Chennai Metro Rail Phase-I extension completed at a cost of Rs 3,770 crore and flagged off passenger services from Washermenpet to Wimco Nagar. He noted that the work was completed on time despite the Covid-19 pandemic. He said the material for the 9.05-km stretch was procured locally and supports his idea of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.
Modi also inaugurated 22-km fourth railway line between Chennai Beach and Attipattu. It will be an additional track to Thiruvallur districts meant to ease traffic from Chennai Port.
Railway Electrification of single line section in Villupuram-Cuddalore-Mayiladuthurai-Thanjavur and Mayiladuthurai-Thiruvarur completed at a cost of Rs 423 crore was launched by PM Modi. He said this will be a great boon to delta districts. The electrification of this 228-km route will enable free flow of traffic without the need for a change of traction between Chennai Egmore and Kanyakumari.