Railway Minister Faults Odisha Govt For Delay In Kalahandi Loco Workshop

Bhawanipatna: Work on an electric loco periodical overhauling (POH) workshop will begin at Narla in Kalahandi district as soon as the Odisha government provides the land, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said during a tour of the district.

The minister said more than 300 acres of land is required for the project, but the state government has provided 141 acres so far. “I appeal to the residents of Kalahandi to demand the required land for the project from the state government,” he told the media.

Notably, Indian Railways had sanctioned the project in 2017-18 budget at an estimated cost of Rs 186.37 crore.

“I am here to get the blessings of the common people. My aim is to better the railway infrastructure in Kalahandi district and solve the people’s problem,” Vaishnaw said.

As part of this initiative, the minister announced that a rail project from Junagarh to Ambaguda will be started soon. Besides, pending projects along with the expansion of the railway line from Junagarh to Dharmagarh will be expedited, he said.

Taking a dig at the state government, the BJP leader said, “Those who have not seen pain won’t understand the plight of common people. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi hails from a common family, he understands this. We don’t have to learn from others.”

Besides politics and public meetings, the minister also took out time to visit a temple. “I offered my prayers to the deity at Maa Manikeswari shrine in Bhawanipatna,” he said.

Kalahandi MP Basanta Panda and several district BJP leaders accompanied Vaishnaw during his tour on Saturday.