New Delhi, October 26: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari will on Tuesday lay the foundation stones of nine highway projects in Tripura to be built at over Rs 2,752 crore, the government said on Monday. The projects will enhance socio-economic conditions of the locality, it said.

"Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and MSMEs Nitin Gadkari will lay the foundation stones of nine national highway projects with a total length of nearly 262 km worth over Rs 2,752 crore in Tripura tomorrow (Tuesday)," the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a statement. Nitin Gadkari Launches Blasting Process for Zojila Tunnel Construction Work in Jammu and Kashmir.

The projects, on completion, will provide faster and hassle-free inter-state and international connectivity to Bangladesh, and will be a major stride towards strengthening the tourism sector of the state, the statement said.

The new projects will provide better connectivity, fast and safe movement of traffic to various tourist places, historical places and religious places in the entire state, it added.

"They are likely to generate a large number of employment and self-employment opportunities to the unskilled, semi-skilled and skilled manpower of the region. The projects will reduce travel time and maintenance cost of the vehicles and saving of fuel," the statement said.

Implementation of the project would result in enhanced socio-economic conditions of the locality, it said adding that these will improve transport of agricultural goods and access to greater markets, thereby reducing the cost of goods and services.

These will also create easy and speedy access to health care and emergency services. "In a nut shell, after completion of the above projects, there will be a quantum jump in the development of tourism, economic and international connectivity of this region. Finally, it will give impetus to the GDP (gross domestic product) of Tripura," the ministry said.

The event will be presided over by Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb in presence of Union ministers Jitendra Singh and V K Singh, ministers from the state, members of parliament, MLAs and senior officers from the Centre and the state.