The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved two Railway projects of Ministry of Railways with total estimated cost of Rs.6,798 crore (approx.).
The approved projects are doubling of Narkatiaganj-Raxaul-Sitamarhi-Darbhanga & Sitamarhi-Muzaffarpur Section covering 256 kms and construction of new line between Errupalem and Namburu via Amaravati covering 57 kms, Ministry of Railways said in a statement. The Two projects covering 8 Districts in 3 States i.e., Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Bihar will increase the existing network of Indian Railways by about 313 Kms, it added.
The doubling of Narkatiaganj-Raxaul-Sitamarhi-Darbhanga & Sitamarhi-Muzaffarpur Section will strengthen the connectivity to Nepal, North-east India and Border areas and facilitating movement of passenger trains along with goods train resulting in the socio-economic growth of the region. The new rail line project Errupalem-Amaravati-Namburu traverses through NTR Vijayawada and Guntur districts of Andhra Pradesh and Khammam district of Telangana.
As per the information shared by the Rail Ministry, the New Line project will provide connectivity to about 168 villages and about 12 Lakh population with 9 new stations. Multi-tracking project will enhance connectivity to Two Aspirational Districts (Sitamarhi and Muzaffarpur) serving about 388 villages and about 9 lakh population.Notably, these are essential routes for transportation of commodities such as agriculture products, fertilizer, coal, iron ore, steel, cement, etc. The capacity augmentation works will result in additional freight traffic of magnitude 31 MTPA (Million Tonnes Per Annum).
The new line proposal will provide direct connectivity to “Amaravati” the proposed Capital of Andhra Pradesh and improve mobility for industries and the population, providing enhanced efficiency and service reliability for Indian Railways.