Union minister Nitin Gadkari inaugurates country’s tallest tricolour in Amritsar

Standing at 418 feet at the Attari-Wagah international border in Amritsar, the new flagpole stands 18 feet taller than Pakistan's flagpole.

Published Oct 19, 2023 | 10:34 PMUpdated Oct 19, 2023 | 10:34 PM

Gadkari was in Punjab to inspect the under-construction DAK Greenfield Expressway and Amritsar Bypass. (Supplied)

On Thursday, 19 October, Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the tallest national flag — 418 feet — at the Attari-Wagah international border in Amritsar, Punjab. He was accompanied by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.

“It is the golden day of my life. I have come to the Attari-Wagah border for the first time. National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has installed the tallest national flag here. This is a place that inspires you to be patriotic. I have inaugurated a lot of things in life like tunnels, bridges but this is the most amazing. I am delighted and I thank the jawans who are guarding our borders,” said Gadkari.

The Attari-Wagah international border is around 30 km from Amritsar and 22 km from Lahore in Pakistan.

Costing around ₹3.5 crore, this flagpole replaces the 360-foot high one India had installed at the same location in March 2017. In response, Pakistan had erected a 400-foot-tall flag. This Indian flag stands 18 feet taller than Pakistan’s.

Gadkari in Punjab

Gadkari was in Punjab today to inspect the under-construction Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Greenfield Expressway (DAK) and Amritsar Bypass. This 669 km DAK expressway is being built at a cost of ₹40,000 crore.

Gadkari was in Punjab to inspect the under-construction DAK Expressway and Amritsar Bypass. (Supplied)

Gadkari was in Punjab to inspect the under-construction DAK Expressway and Amritsar Bypass. (Supplied)

With its construction, one can reach Amritsar from Delhi in 4 hours and Katra from Delhi in 6 hours. Presently, the distance from Delhi to Katra is 727 km and with the construction of this route, the distance will be reduced by 58 km.

A major feature of this corridor includes Asia’s longest 1300-metre-long cable-stayed bridge over the Beas river. Starting from Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) expressway in Delhi, this expressway is being built for 137 km in Haryana.

The length of this expressway in Punjab is 399 km. The length of the expressway in Jammu and Kashmir is 135 km. In Punjab, this expressway will pass through industrial areas like Patiala, Sangrur, Malerkotla, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, and Gurdaspur.

Also read: Punjab CM, children offer prayers at Golden Temple for drug-free state

Expressway to boost state economy

Mann said that the work on this ambitious project will be completed very soon and it will be dedicated to people thereafter.

“This project will give major flip to the economic activity in the region, besides opening new vistas of employment for the youth,” he said.

He added, “With the intervention of the Union Minister, the work on this project will be further expedited, thereby giving impetus to the economy of the state. This highway will facilitate the pilgrims going to pay obeisance at Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, apart from giving boost to economic activity in the region,” he added.

Also read: Punjab Governor questions CM, AAP government’s fiscal prudence

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