The Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved construction of six railway lines and a railway bridge to cater to both increased passenger and freight needs in various areas of the country. The proposals will cost over Rs.10,700 crore and most part of the expenditure will be met through extra budgetary resources, which is institutional financing. Details of the six approved projects are as follows:
Doubling of Hubli-Chickajur railway line: Doubling of 190-km Hubli-Chickajur broad gauge single railway line has been approved. The total estimated expenditure will be Rs.1,294 crore. The project is likely to be completed in 4.25 years during the 13th Plan period and will cover the areas of Chitradurga, Davangere, Haveri and Dharwad.
Construction of Wardha (Sewagram) – Ballarshah 3rd railway line: Construction of Wardha (Sewagram) – Ballarshah 3rd railway line of 132 km will be taken up at an estimated completion cost of Rs.1,443 crore. The project is likely to be completed in five years during 13th Plan period and will be located in Wardha and Chandrapur districts.
Doubling of Ramna-Singrauli railway line: Doubling of 160 km long Ramna – Singarauli railway line has been approved at a cost Rs.2,676 crore and is likely to be completed by 2019-20. The project will cover the districts of Garhwa in Jharkhand, Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh and Sonbhadra in Uttar Pradesh.
Construction of 3rd railway line between Anuppur-Katni: Construction of 165 km long third railway line between Anuppur-Katni in Madhya Pradesh has also been approved at a cost of Rs.1,596 crore. The project is likely to be completed in 5.25 years spanning over 12th and 13th plan period. The project would cover the districts of Anuppur, Shahdol, Umaria and Katni districts of Madhya Pradesh.
Doubling of Katni-Singrauli railway line: Construction of doubling of 261 km long Katni – Singarauli railway at a cost of Rs.2084.90 crore has been approved. The project will be completed in 5.25 years. The project would cover the districts of Katni, Shahdol, Sidhi and Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh.
Construction of bridge and doubling of Rampur Dumra-Tal-Rajendrapul: Construction of additional bridge and doubling project of Rampur Dumra-Tal-Rajendrapul sector in Bihar at a cost of Rs.1,700 crore has also got CCEA’s approval. The project is likely to be completed by 2019-20. The project is located in Begusarai and Patna districts of Bihar. The existing rail-cum-road bridge at Hathidah has single line track and doubling is not possible. Present traffic utilization of the section is 123.5 per cent. At present this is the only railway bridge connecting both North and South Bihar. Existing single line has resulted in heavy detention of goods and passenger traffic.
