NATIONAL : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday unveiled the Surat Diamond Bourse, poised to become the world’s largest and most advanced center for international diamond and jewelry business.
The Surat Diamond Bourse is not merely a trading center; it is a comprehensive global hub facilitating the exchange of both rough and polished diamonds, along with a focus on the jewelry business. The scale and ambition of this project underscore Surat’s commitment to revolutionizing the diamond trade and establishing itself as a pivotal player in the international market.
With 67 lakh square feet of floor area, the SDB is built on 35.54 acres of land at a cost of ₹3400 crore. It is set to become a global center of rough and polished diamond trading.
Built at a cost of ₹353 crore, the newly integrated terminal building of Surat Airport will be capable of managing 1,200 domestic and 600 international passengers hourly during peak hours, with a provision to increase the capacity to 3,000.
Hailing the new structure, PM Modi said, “One more diamond has been added to Surat’s magnificence… The tall buildings around the world have lost their sheen in front of such a huge diamond.” “Surat diamond industry has been giving employment to around 8 lakh people, and with the coming up of new diamond bourse, 1.5 lakh more of them will get jobs,” Modi said.
Dedicating the new integrated terminal building at Surat Airport to the people of Gujarat, PM Modi noted that today, the people of Surat and the traders and businessmen here received two more gifts.
“Today itself the new terminal of Surat Airport has been inaugurated and the second big thing that has happened is that now Surat Airport has got the status of International Airport,” he said.
He observed that after the recent election results, discussions on ‘Modi’s Guarantee’ have increased, something people of Surat have known for a long ago. “The hardworking people here have seen ‘Modi’s Guarantee’ turning into reality and ‘Surat Diamond Burse’ is also an example of this guarantee,” he said.