NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Kerala and Karnataka on Thursday, Friday, September 1-2.
He will dedicate the nation's first indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, on September 1 at Kochi, Kerala's Cochin Shipyard Limited. Later during his visit to Karnataka, the PM is scheduled to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone for projects worth about Rs 3,800 crore in Mangaluru.

The PM will also  inaugurate INS Vikrant, the nation's first aircraft carrier to be planned and constructed domestically, at Kochi. An official release said that Vikrant, the largest ship ever built in India's maritime history, was created by the in-house Warship Design Bureau (WDB) of the Indian Navy and constructed by Cochin Shipyard Limited.

The aircraft carrier was given its name in honour of her historic predecessor, India's first aircraft carrier, which was instrumental in the war of 1971. The new Naval Ensign (Nishaan), which dispenses with the colonial history and honours the rich Indian maritime heritage, will also be unveiled by Prime Minister Modi during the occasion.

The PM  would later inaugurate and lay the foundation stone for industrialization and mechanisation projects costing about Rs 3,800 crore in Mangaluru. He would officially launch a project costing over Rs 280 crore by the New Mangalore Port Authority to mechanise berths for handling containers and other cargo.

The mechanised terminal will strengthen efficiency and reduce turn-around time, pre-berthing delay and dwell time in the Port by around 35 percent, thus giving a boost to the business environment.

The Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone for five Port-sponsored projects totaling about Rs 1,000 crore.

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