| Projects/Initiatives |
Details |
| Navi Mumbai International Airport |
- It will be India’s first airport connected by water taxi and equipped with an Automated People Mover (APM) linking terminals.
- It will decongest Mumbai airport, enhance regional air connectivity, and boost overall aviation capacity.
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| Parandur Airport Project |
- Parandur Greenfield Airport project in Tamil Nadu, proposed as Chennai’s second airport, has faced opposition due to displacement & risk of Kamban Canal flooding.
- First proposed in 1998 under the BOOT model, finalising Parandur in 2022.
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| World’s Highest Motorable Pass |
- Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has opened the Mig La Pass in Ladakh at an altitude of 19,400 feet, making it the world’s highest motorable pass, surpassing Umling La.
- Mig La Pass is part of the Likaru-Mig La-Fukche road alignment under BRO’s Project Himank.
- This strategic route strengthens India’s connectivity in the eastern Ladakh sector, enhancing border accessibility near Line of Actual Control (LAC).
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| Chenab Railway Bridge |
- Location: Between Bakkal and Kauri in Reasi district, Jammu & Kashmir.
- Height: 359 meters above Chenab riverbed, making it the world’s tallest rail and arch bridge, 35 meters taller than the Eiffel Tower.
- Part of Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Railway Link, providing all-weather rail connectivity to Kashmir Valley.
- Declared as a Project of National Importance in 2002.
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| Steel Truss Bridges |
- Steel truss bridges use interconnected steel bars to form triangular units that distribute loads efficiently; notable Indian examples include Pamban, Howrah, and Saraighat.
- Advantage: Truss bridges span long distances and carry heavy loads, ideal for railways and highways.
- Key Issues: Failure of one component may precipitate total collapse.
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| Anji Khad Bridge |
- India’s first cable-stayed rail bridge.
- Located in Reasi, J&K, part of Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) Project.
- Enhances connectivity between Katra and the Kashmir Valley.
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| Pamban Bridge |
- Railway bridge connecting Mandapam town in mainland India with Pamban Island.
- Pamban Island (Rameswaram Island) is an island located between peninsular India and Sri Lanka.
- India’s First Vertical Lift Railway Sea Bridge. It will replace the old original Pamban Bridge.
- The new 2.08-kilometre-long structure stands three meters higher than the old Pamban Bridge.
- Expected lifespan: 58 years.
- Old Pamban Bridge is India’s first sea bridge, built for trade; opened to traffic in 1914.
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| SilverLine Railway Project |
- Union government has asked Kerala to address technical and environmental concerns regarding the SilverLine Project and integrate it with the State’s existing broad-gauge line.
- SilverLine is a proposed 530-km semi–high-speed rail corridor connecting Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod, cutting travel time from 12 hours to under 4 hours.
- It spans 11 districts & aims to decongest existing rail network along Kerala’s densely populated coast.
- The project is being implemented by the Kerala Rail Development Corporation Ltd. (K-RDCL), a Kerala–Indian Railways joint venture.
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| Hortoki-Sairang line
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- Commission of Railway Safety (CRS) has cleared Hortoki–Sairang section, enabling rail connectivity to Aizawl, Mizoram’s capital.
- Commission of Railway Safety (CRS) is a statutory body under the Ministry of Civil Aviation. It is governed by the Railways Act of 1989 and headed by the Chief Commissioner of Railway Safety.
- It inspects and approves new railway lines, investigates serious train accidents, and conducts safety audits. Final clearance from the CRS is mandatory before opening any new railway section to the public.
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- The 51.38 km Bairabi–Sairang rail line features 48 tunnels (12.8 km total) and 55 major bridges; Bridge No. 196 is 104 metres tall—higher than the Qutub Minar.
- The route is divided into four parts: Bairabi–Hortoki, Hortoki–Kawnpui, Kawnpui–Mualkhang, and Mualkhang–Sairang.
- The last stretch (Hortoki–Sairang, 33.86 km) connects Aizawl (about 20 km from Sairang) to the Indian Railways network for the first time.
- Aizawl is now the fourth Northeast state capital linked by rail, after Guwahati, Agartala, and Itanagar.
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| Bhubaneswar Bypass Project |
- Union Cabinet approved a 6-lane Bhubaneswar Bypass (110 km) in Odisha using the Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM).
- Officially known as Greenfield Capital Region Ring Road, it links Rameshwaram and Tangi, easing congestion on NH-16.
- It aims to enhance freight transport, reduce logistics costs.
- Integrates NH-55, NH-57, NH-655, SH-65, and links airport, railway, SEZ, MMLP, & ports (Puri and Astrang) for improved multi-modal connectivity.
- NH-16: Links Kolkata and Chennai through Odisha and Andhra Pradesh along the eastern coast.
- NH-55: Connects Sambalpur to Cuttack, forming Odisha’s vital east–west transport route.
- NH-57: Links Khagaria in Bihar to Silchar in Assam through Bengal.
- NH-655: Located entirely within Odisha, it links the mining and industrial sectors of the belt.
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| Silkyara Bend-Barkot Tunnel |
- 4.531 km long, two-lane, bi-directional tunnel with an integrated escape passage.
- Tunnel Route: Connects Silkyara & Barkot on NH-134 (formerly NH-94) in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand.
- Built nder the Engineering, Procurement, Construction (EPC) mode. Funded under National Highway Original [NH(O)] Scheme by Ministry of Road Transport & Highways.
- Baba Baukhnag Temple consecrated at the tunnel mouth. Baukhnag is a local deity revered in Uttarkashi, believed to protect travelers and workers in the Himalayan region.
- Part of Chardham Plan: A strategic component of Char Dham Mahamarg Vikas Pariyojana.
- Reduces travel time by approximately one hour between Barkot and Yamunotri, enhancing connectivity between Gangotri and Yamunotri, two critical Char Dham pilgrimage destinations.
- 90% of the tunnel was excavated through weak phyllite rock formations.
- Construction Technique: Built using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method (NATM), which uses real-time rock monitoring to optimize reinforcement methods, especially suited for variable geology.
- Phyllite is a fine-grained, foliated metamorphic rock with a silky sheen formed from the low-grade metamorphism of shale or slate.
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| Z-Morh Tunnel |
- Z-Morh Tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir enhances year-round connectivity between Srinagar and Sonamarg,
- Location: 6.5 kilometres, Two-lane bi-directional road tunnel with a 10-meter width, Situated on the Srinagar-Leh National Highway (NH-1), ~2,637 meters (8,650 feet) above sea level.
- Safety Features: Parallel 6.426 km escape tunnel gives an advanced ventilation system.
- Construction Techniques: Construction used drill-and-blast methods with ANFO explosives for excavation, alongside the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM) for tunnelling.
- Altitude Challenges: Constructed at high altitudes, addressing issues like heavy snowfall and avalanches.
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| Shyok Tunnel Inaugrated |
- 920-metre road tunnel built by BRO on Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi road in eastern Ladakh.
- It secures year-round surface connectivity from Leh to forward areas, including Daulat Beg Oldi, India’s northernmost military base near the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
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| Banakacherla Project |
- Its construction is emerging as a major flashpoint between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
- The Banakacherla Project, also known as Godavari–Banakacherla Link Project, is a major intra-state river-linking initiative undertaken by Andhra Pradesh.
- Aims to divert surplus Godavari River water to Penna River basin via the Krishna River, thereby enhancing irrigation and drinking water supplies in drought-prone regions.
- As part of the project, large reservoirs are proposed at Bollapalli (Guntur district) and Banakacherla (Nandyal district). These would facilitate the expansion of the Polavaram irrigation system, enabling the diversion of Godavari waters deep into Rayalaseema and the southern coastal areas of Andhra.
Penna River
- Seasonal river that flows in two streams, in both North and South directions, forming shape of a bow, hence its name, Pinakini.
- The name Pinakini refers to Pinaka, the bow of Nandhiswara, the presiding deity of Nandi hills.
- Origin: Rises in the Nandi Hills in Chikkaballapur District of Karnataka.
- Flows through Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
- Empties into: Bay of Bengal.
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| Golden Quadrilateral 2.0 |
- India plans to launch Golden Quadrilateral 2.0, a high-speed expressway network under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
- It will expand on the Golden Quadrilateral and North-South and East-West (NS-EW) Corridors.
- Objective: To reduce congestion on existing highways and reduce the country’s high logistics costs.
- The NS-EW Corridor is India’s largest integrated highway project, connecting the country’s four extremities–Srinagar (North), Kanyakumari and Kochi (South), Silchar (East), and Porbandar (West).
- The Golden Quadrilateral (GQ) is a network of national highways connecting Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata, covering about 5,846 km. Launched in 2001 as part of the National Highways Development Project (NHDP), it is managed by the National Highways Authority of India.
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| National Waterway 57 |
- National Waterway-57 was operationalised with the first cargo trial run between Chandrapur (Kamrup) and Hatsingimari (South Salmara).
- NW-57 spans 46 km entirely along Assam’s Kopili River.
- Nodal Agency: Managed by IWAI under Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways.
- It supports intra-state water freight in line with the goals of Maritime India Vision 2030.
Kopili River
- Interstate river flowing through Meghalaya and Assam.
- Rises in Saipung Reserve Forest, located in Borail Range (Meghalaya), at an elevation of about 1,525 metres.
- South-bank tributary of the Brahmaputra.
- Drainage Basin: Drains parts of North Cachar Hills, Karbi Anglong, Nagaon, and Morigaon.
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| India’s First Underwater Museum |
- India’s first underwater museum and artificial coral reef is being developed around the decommissioned warship INS Guldar in Maharashtra.
- Objective: It aims to conserve naval heritage, enhance tourism, and promote marine biodiversity.
- Implementation Agency: Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation, supported by the Ministry of Tourism.
- INS Guldar was a Kumbhir-class landing ship tank for amphibious operations, built in Poland, commissioned in 1985 and decommissioned in 2024.
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| Winter Char Dham Circuit |
- Uttarakhand government has inaugurated the Winter Char Dham circuit to promote tourism during off-season winter months.
| Char Dham Shrine |
Winter Seat |
| Gangotri |
Mukhba in Uttarkashi district. |
| Yamunotri |
Kharsali in Uttarkashi district. |
| Kedarnath |
Omkareshwar Temple in Ukhimath, Rudraprayag district. |
| Badrinath |
Pandukeshwar in Chamoli district. |
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