Prime Minister Narendra Modi will sound the poll bugle in Maharastra with the inauguration of big-ticket projects in Yavatmal and Dhule on Saturday.

Senior leaders of the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) said that with this the party will begin its preparations both for the State and national elections in 2019. Mr. Modi will unveil a model residential school in Nanded, housing units under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), key rail projects and lay the foundation stone of roads planned under the Central Road Fund (CRF).

A state-of-the-art Eklavya Model Residential School will be opened at Nanded, with a total capacity of 42 students. The school is being seen as a panacea to the region’s dilapidated ashram shalas, which have not done much to improve quality of education for tribal students. It will also provide an avenue for their overall growth and personal development, officials said.

The PM will also hand over keys to selected beneficiaries for the houses constructed under PMAY, and later flag off the Ajni (Nagpur)-Pune train through video link. The train comprises of three-tier air conditioned coaches and will provide overnight service between Nagpur and Pune. The foundation stone of roads under the CRF will be laid through the press of button in the same ceremony.

He will also lay the foundation stone of the Dhule-Nardana and third Jalgaon-Manmad Railway lines, the Bhusaval-Bandra Khandesh Express Train and inaugurate the Jalgaon-Udhana Doubling and Electrification Rail Project.

The PM is also scheduled to distribute cheques under the Maharashtra State Rural Livelihoods Mission to women self-help groups. Among the irrigation projects, he will launch the Lower Panazara Medium Project under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchan Yojana, and the Sulwade Jamphal Kanoli Lift Irrigation Schemes at Dhule.