SRINAGAR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to pay his first official visit as the prime minister of India to Kashmir on July 4.
The prime minister will arrive in Jammu and then proceed to nearby Katra town to inaugurate the Katra-Udhampur rail line that would cover a 25-km distance between the two places, the sources said.
Katra is the base town of the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine that is visited by millions of devotees every year.
After the commissioning of the Katra railway station, pilgrims would be able to reach the town directly without having to engage other modes of transport as they now do.
Railways minister Sadananda Gowda and minister of state in the PMO Jitender Singh will accompany Modi during his visit.
The prime minister will then leave for Srinagar where he will chair a security review meeting at the Badami Bagh headquarters of the army’s 15 Corps.
The meeting will be attended by governor N N Vohra, chief minister Omar Abdullah, general officer commanding-in-chief (GOC-in-C) Northern Command, Lt. Ge. D S Hooda and the three corps commanders of the 14th, 15th and the 16th Corps.
Senior security officials will brief Modi about the latest situation on the Line of Control and in the hinterland.
The return and rehabilitation of the Kashmiri migrants would also figure in the discussion in Srinagar sources said.
The governor will later host lunch for the prime minister at the Raj Bhavan in Srinagar.
Modi is also scheduled to visit Uri town in Baramulla district to inaugurate the 240 MW Uri-II hydroelectric power project.
Last year, former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh was expected to inaugurate the project, but the programme was cancelled following technical snag in the project during its trial run. Sources said foolproof security arrangements are being made to facilitate a smooth visit of prime minister Modi.
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