U’khand allocated Rs 4,641 crores for Railway projects
By Arun Pratap Singh
Dehradun, 3 Feb: Union Railway Minister, Information and Broadcasting Minister, and Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw today addressed a press conference on the Railway Budget in virtual mode from Delhi. He addressed journalists from Uttarakhand and a few other northern states. Journalists from Dehradun participated in this press conference from the PIB Office in Dehradun. Addressing the media, Vaishnaw expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, noting that a total amount of Rs 2,52,000 crores has been allocated to the Railways in this year’s budget. Vaishnav also thanked the Union Finance Minister for this “generous” allocation.
Vaishnaw reminded the media persons that between the years 2009 and ‘14, a total budget of Rs 187 crores was allocated to the state, which has at present risen to Rs 4,641 per annum crores – 25 times more than the allocation made for Uttarakhand by the then UPA Government. He also shared that 11 railway stations in Uttarakhand are being developed as Amrit stations. Also that 49 percent of the work on the 125 km Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail project had been completed, with a project cost of Rs 24,659 crore, adding that 96 percent of the work on the 27.5 km Deoband- Roorkee rail line is also complete, with a project cost of Rs 1,053 crores. He reminded that the 63 kilometre long Kichha-Khatima rail line will be built at a cost of Rs 228 crore.
Vaishnaw shared that an amount of Rs 4641 crores has been allocated to Uttarakhand out of the total budget allocation to the Railways and claimed that Uttarakhand will benefit from the budget allocation for various rail projects in in the state. He stated that this funding will strengthen the rail network in Uttarakhand. Regarding the Central Government’s highly ambitious Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail project for the four Dhams, Vaishnav stated that 49 percent of the 125 km project has been completed. This project is considered highly ambitious by the government both at the central and the state level.
Vaishnaw also shared that, since 2014, 69 km of new rail tracks have been laid in Uttarakhand, and 303 km of rail lines have been electrified, reminding that between 2009 and ‘14, no rail lines were electrified. Today, every railway line in the state is electrified. He reminded that currently, work is ongoing on three rail projects, totalling 216 kms, with a cost of Rs 25,941 crore. Additionally, eleven stations, including Dehradun, Haridwar Junction, Harrawala, Kashipur Junction, Kathgodam, Kichha, Kotdwar, Lal Kuan Junction, Ramnagar, Roorkee, and Tanakpur, are being developed and upgraded as Amrit stations at a cost of Rs 147 crore.
During the virtual press conference, it was also mentioned that the train safety system called Kavach is recommended for 49 route kilometres in the state for railway security. Since 2014, 100 rail flyovers and underbridges have been constructed in the state. Six lifts and fourteen escalators have been installed at the stations for passenger convenience, and WiFi facilities are available at 31 stations. Additionally, two Vande Bharat trains are successfully running in the state. He also reminded that, in the recent trials conducted for Vande Sleeper trains, trains were successfully run at the speed of 180 kilometres per hour without any undue vibrations. Vaishnaw reminded that the Modi Government is focussing on rapid infrastructural improvements as far as railways are concerned. Currently, about 15,000 railway tracks are being upgraded or being laid afresh and funds are being allocated for various projects throughout the year not just in the budget. He claimed that the earlier governments did not focus on infrastructure improvement and development and mainly focussed on announcing new trains through railway budgets without even conducting any feasibility tests.
The railway minister also admitted that he receives continuous demands from across the country for more trains to cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, etc., but the problem is that most of the railway stations in these metropolitan cities are working beyond capacity. Hence, the Modi Government is also focussing on upgrading the smaller stations in these cities and also upgrading the existing major railway stations by increasing the yard facility, etc., without which it may not be possible to run additional trains.
